Keeping Future
by banal
Summary: A Yumi/Sachiko fic which continues where the anime/manga/novel left off. AUTHOR'S NOTE: I haven't updated this in a long time due to personal issues but all that will be changing very soon. To all who have continued interest in this: Watch this space.
1. Chapter 1

_**Notes: **__Okay. This is the first thing I've written in a while, and I mean a really long while, so bear with me._

_I'd like to get some opinions on this as chapter one of an ongoing story and some constructive criticism on the flow of the writing, the pace of the story, the characters, etc., for two simple resons: One, this is a new fandom for me; and two, I have been out of the writing game for some time, as I mentioned._

_Owing to this, I have got no idea how long it's going to be or what's going to happen in each chapter other than at least one date (which involves a dog) and some kisses._

_I am also quite interested in any suggestions you have for changes in the plot. I know it will come to me, because Yumi and Sachiko are fairly easy to understand, I think, but I'm curious to see what other people want to happen, and curious if I would be able to write like that._

_So, I'm going to stop yammering on now._

_Thank you for reading this tentative first chapter (if you're not already bored to death by the notes)._

_

* * *

_

CHAPTER ONE

The sweet spring breeze played with Yumi's hair as she stood before Maria-sama, hands clasped. Graduation had come and gone, and now it was the beginning of term again in the perennial school cycle.

Shimako-san had given the farewell address this year. Nobody was surprised. When she had announced her intention to do so at the graduation ceremony meeting at Rose Mansion, it had been met with relieved smiles and perceptive nods. It seemed common knowledge that Yumi, much to her chagrin, would cry at the stand, and that Yoshino, even though she would have a strong hold of her emotions up there, would not want to be separated quite so much from Rei. She might not be sat next to her onee-sama but she was at least in the same crowd for now.

Yumi sighed for her friend. She couldn't imagine having onee-sama so far away, but Yoshino was stronger than Yumi, in that way. _Besides, everyone knows how much she loves an adventure_, Yumi thought, seeing Shimazu-san's confident grin in her mind. Yoshino will visit Rei, she was sure, and as close a family as they were, they would never become too distant in their hearts.

She laughed to herself remembering how indignant Yoshino had been on learning that she had to perform again at the graduation party. She had been excellent, though, performing a dance she had composed entirely herself incorporating Kendo manoeuvres and disciplines. Touko-chan was wonderful also, reciting a translation of Parting by Charlotte Bronte. It had captured all of their hearts and brought unexpected tears to Rei-sama's eyes. Most surprisingly, it was Noriko who had stolen the show. Even though only in her school uniform and sick with nerves, she had danced a traditional fan dance with a grace and elegance that belied her occasionally blunt personality. They had all later learned from Shimako-san that it was something Noriko had not done in public since her days in elementary.

The sun was already quite high this mid-April morning and Yumi took a slow, deep breath of the crisp air. It was a beautiful day. The cherry blossoms were in full bloom, painting scatterings of pink amid the green school grounds, and one or two had been caught by the playful little breeze and danced over to her as she stood at the foot of the statue. She had always found it calming to stand for just a moment with Maria-sama watching over her, even if not in prayer.

Today, however, she was asking for Maria-sama's blessing of courage and strength, as she had done each and every day so far this year.

Being a senior was _hard_. And Yumi didn't mean hard like, 'Oh my, how complicated this little equation seems!' No.

There was more time devoted to classes this year than in her previous two years at Lilian. She already had papers to complete from each of her teachers and there had been barely 2 weeks to become acquainted with school life again. As well as her usual studies, she also had guidance advice to attend soon. Yumi groaned inwardly. How was she supposed to know what she wanted to do for the rest of her life? How does one make a choice like that? How did onee-sama decide?

She was also now Rosa Chinensis, something she'd only begun to acknowledge as a _possibility_ recently. Even though the events of last year had been leading up to it, Yumi found it difficult to comprehend the role she had now inherited. Somehow, even when Youko-sama had been at school, it was always Sachiko-sama that had held the title of Rosa Chinensis in Yumi's heart.

She couldn't imagine having to adopt that mantle.

When onee-sama had first offered her the rosary that Touko-chan now kept, Yumi had run. She'd not understood why onee-sama had chosen her as her petite-soeur, thinking only that she'd been thrown to her by chance and that Sachiko-sama had picked her up as the first to come along. It had been true at the time, but a friendship had developed which led Yumi to accept onee-sama's offer. Yumi smiled happily at the memory.

It did, however, complicate her feelings towards being Rosa Chinensis. It pleased Yumi to know that Sachiko-sama chose her because she felt she was the right petite-soeur for her and not just because she would make a good Rose, but it also left her feeling shaky about her abilities as Rosa Chinensis and also, more importantly, her responsibilities as a grande-soeur.

_Onee-sama! How do I keep up with it all? How can I balance my school work, my duties as a Rose, and Touko-chan? _Yumi looked down at her clasped hands. She meant to be praying to Maria-sama but... _Onee-sama... I...I need you..._

'Ooh, Yumi-sama, you look so wistful again today! Poor Yumi-sama!'

Yumi jumped and looked to her left to see Touko-chan standing beside her with a playful smirk.

'What do you mean, Touko-chan! You startled me!' she admonished. 'And you are supposed to call me onee-sama!'

Touko-chan waved her off nonchalantly. 'Yes, yes,' she said, leaning in closer to Yumi. 'Thinking about your missing onee-sama again, eh?'

Yumi flushed red. _How can she know that? _she thought with a grumble. _And I thought I'd got better at making faces..._

Touko-chan stuck her tongue out. 'Ah, Yumi-sama, you are better at hiding it but not from me!'

Yumi's eyes widened. 'Oh! Did I say that out loud?'

Touko laughed. 'It used to get on my nerves but now I love your honest face! Come on, Yumi-sama,' she added, tugging on her older sister's sleeve. 'You don't want to be late so often anymore now that you're Rosa Chinensis!' She walked ahead with a smile.

Yumi hunched her shoulders and trudged after Touko-chan. She was pleased that during their half-day date her petite-soeur had opened up to her and that she, Touko-chan and onee-sama had become more comfortable with each other during their week at the Ogasawara summer home, but she was beginning to regret fate having chosen her such a wilful sister.

'Touko-chan!' she shouted. 'Call me ONEE-SAMA!'

Matsudaira Touko, with one hand carrying her school satchel, raised the other in a wave as she continued to walk through the school doors.

Yumi groaned aloud. _A wilful sister indeed!_ She smiled, though, and took her first step towards the building. _I wouldn't have her any other way._

_

* * *

_

Sachiko surprised herself, really. She had found it quite easy to ingratiate herself into the university campus, despite her dislike for crowds of strangers. She had been a little worried at first upon learning that Lilian Girls' University had a very large percentage of students outside the escalator system attending, but it had found that it was somehow... different to school.

She looked around at the students scattered throughout the cafeteria. Some were reading for their assignments, like her, and others, for pleasure. There were small groups of friends talking happily with each other over their meals, and some just sitting quietly and staring out at the cherry blossoms. It was calmer, as though the urgency and competition at school had been removed from learning, leaving students free to pursue things in their own time. Sachiko was unsure how this had come to be as both the University and High School had a similar student council system, similar clubs and activities and similar values and aims. She could only surmise that it was the collective attitude of people at University. Sachiko remembered Yumi telling her that Sei-sama wanted to come to Lilian Girls' to relax and try to enjoy life for a while. She glanced again at the many faces in the room, wondering if most of them came with that as one of their objectives.

For a moment, she thought how different she must seem to them, coming here only to be close to someone dear to her, but knew it in her heart that she couldn't be the only one.

But even so... she felt lonely without Yumi.

Sachiko stared at the page and brushed her fingers across the knitted book cover, smiling to herself. Yumi had given her a matching book bag that she'd also made herself with the same motif; green background, bright red rose. She saw the bag in her mind as she remembered unwrapping it under the stars with Yumi by her side, her eyes wide with apprehension and eagerness. She'd knitted the straps wider and thicker at the arch especially so that they wouldn't cut into Sachiko's shoulders and, Yumi being Yumi, hadn't pointed it out to Sachiko.

_Sachiko beamed at her petite-soeur. __**You don't do things for people in order for them to like you, or to receive their thanks, do you, Yumi?**__ She gripped the handles of her bag so tightly that her knuckles were white. __**I will never let go of this.**_

_Yumi looked so relieved. 'I hope you don't think that I cheated, Onee-sama, giving you the same thing as last year.'_

_Sachiko couldn't help it. She brought one of her hands up to Yumi's cheek tenderly, shaking her head no. __**So soft, so kind... my Yumi.**_

_Her petite-soeur leaned into the touch and, soon enough, Sachiko felt a wetness that she'd been anticipating._

'_I'm going to miss you, onee-sama,' Yumi said, sniffling through her tears._

'_Oh, Yumi, we won't be so very far apart. I will only be next door and you know where my house is. You can always visit me.' Sachiko knew, though, even as she said this, that Yumi would not visit unless invited. Still, she seemed somewhat comforted._

'_I wish that I hadn't won the election now so that I could see you more. I would be less busy if I wasn't going to become Rosa Chinensis. It's going to be a lot of work, isn't it, onee-sama?'_

_Sachiko looked down into Yumi's eyes kindly. 'It will, Yumi, but you can do it. I know you can. And you have Touko-chan to support you now.'_

_Yumi smiled up at her with sparkling eyes and Sachiko braced herself inside. She'd never had such difficulties with a conversation before. She wanted more than ever to take Yumi by the shoulders and beg her to leave school, to run away and be together._

_Not yet, though. Sachiko knew that Yumi was still so innocent, so young, and didn't think any more of her devotion to Sachiko than a great admiration of her grande-soeur. She couldn't see past it as anything other than the innocent adoration of an upperclassmen. If Sachiko didn't time it absolutely right, just as she hadn't with the first rosary offering, then Yumi would run from this also._

'_That's true...' Yumi said, reigning her straying thoughts in. 'But, the truth is that I'm also worried about being a grande-soeur, onee-sama. I wonder if I'm really ready for that.'_

_Sachiko hooked the book bag in her elbow. She pulled her hand away from Yumi's cheek, not missing the fleeting disappointment that crossed her face, and straightened out the scarf of her petite-soeur's uniform. This was the best way to comfort Yumi right now. She needed Sachiko's guidance as an older sister for one last time in school grounds before they left. She knew what Yumi needed to remember right now, even if it was hard to hear it._

'_You care for Touko-chan, don't you?' she asked._

'_Of course!' Yumi answered, as expected. 'I love Touko-chan.'_

_As she'd thought, the words pierced her heart a little but Sachiko pushed away her selfishness for Yumi's sake. 'Then you have no need to worry,' she told her softly. 'I know that you are someone who takes care of things she loves. You have done so without even realising.'_

She hadn't actually meant to say the last part, not in such a way, but Sachiko had been rewarded for it. She closed her eyes from the book and tried to recall her feelings at that moment. She knew it had been wrong to, but at the time she had allowed herself to imagine Yumi's next words were weighted with a heavier meaning.

'_I love you, onee-sama.'_

She had never really felt it before, she knew then. She had never felt this kind of love for anyone until she had met Yumi, and held her soft, delicate frame against her as her petite-soeur. Sachiko touched her lips lightly, wondering not for the first time, _what would it be like? _

She opened her eyes and jumped back.

'Sachiko-chan! How's it going!'

Satou Sei was sat in the chair directly opposite her with an eyebrow raised and her chin resting in her hand. Sachiko, although startled, fought the urge to growl at her senior. It's not that she hated Sei-sama, after all, how could she hate someone who was so sensitive and caring to Yumi? But everyone knew that their personalities would often... clash.

'Sei-sama, you startled me,' she began, getting her bearings. 'I apologise for not noticing you there. I was reading.'

Sei's eyebrows exaggeratedly flew into her fringe. 'Sachiko-chan, you must have been have been deep in that book- I've been here for some time, now!' The hint of a smirk flashed in her eyes.

_Caught._

Sachiko bit back her irritation and smiled coolly at the woman opposite. 'Is there something I can help with, Satou-sama?'

Sei laughed and sat back in her chair, fanning her hands. 'You're such a lady, Sachiko-chan! Always with the formalities! I actually just came to ask how Yumi-chan is doing? I've not seen her since the last school year.' That glint of mischief again.

She was slightly suspicious, but Sachiko answered. 'Yumi-chan is doing well, as far as I know.'

'As far as you know, eh, Sachiko-chan?' Sei grinned.

_'What is this?'_ Sachiko wondered. She eyed Sei across the table as the senior placed her chin in her hand again and tried to figure out what the aim of this conversation was. She'd not sought out Sei-sama's company since starting university, or vice versa. People very rarely, if at all, came to Sachiko for small talk and pleasantries, including Sei. Yumi was the only one who really did that.

Oh.

She barely managed to curb the shock before it came to her face.

_Oh, I see, _she thought, as the point whipped into her mind. _So that's the game, is it? _Sachiko hid a knowing smile and waited for the next play.

'Are you not concerned for cute little Yumi-chan?'

Sachiko was ready for this, though. Throughout their respective second and third years at school, Sei was constantly touching Yumi and flirting with her to make Sachiko jealous. At first, she thought she'd seen right through it, that it had been to make Sachiko realise that she wanted to protect Yumi by becoming her grande-soeur. Having Sei come here and call her 'cute little Yumi-chan' though, without Yumi around and without the soeur system being a factor just confirmed what shocked Sachiko a moment ago- she hadn't seen through anything.

Sei knows. Sei has always known. _And she is here to comfort me._

Sachiko lowered her head, smiling as she closed the book she'd been holding open. She folded her hands over the red rose, grateful for someone's understanding.

Of course, she would never say such a thing. Sei-sama could take gratitude from Yumi and Yumi alone because of how she is. Everyone else, however, was another matter, so Sachiko decided to thank Sei for her cryptic comfort in a way that her senior would understand.

She sat back in her chair nonchalantly and feigned inspection of her well kept nails. 'I'm not worried about my Yumi, Sei-sama. She is virtually in the next room to me.' Sachiko pretended to pick something from the shoulder of her jacket as she flashed a smile at Sei behind hooded eyes, one brow raised. 'It's not as though she's half-way across the world.'

Sei gasped, paled, and finally started laughing. She beat a hand quietly on the table in her mirth. 'Oh, Sachiko-san, I knew that Yumi-chan would be a good influence on you! You are much more fun now!'

Sachiko secretly flushed with pride at winning that hand, finally warming to Sei. She knew that if she looked deeper, she would find that she'd always been fairly jealous of Sei's flamboyant nature and, as of late, her innate sensitivity to Yumi but Sachiko wasn't a fool; she knew that she could trust Sei with her beloved soeur. She wasn't worried about further developments in their friendship; she was envious of how tactile they were together, something that Sachiko could only bring herself to be when Yumi was upset or if they were alone together. It was something she cursed her upbringing for.

Standing, Sei gave a casual salute as a farewell and winked. 'I'll have to come and visit you again, Sachiko-chan, now that you're so interesting to be around.' _Now that we understand one another_, Sachiko filled in for her. 'And perhaps,' Sei added as a parting shot, 'you will even have finished that page by then, eh? Ciao!'

Sachiko let her eyes roll the tiniest bit and nodded as she watched Sei's leave.

_Touché, Sei-san._

_

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**Notes:** Thanks again for reading this if you did. Please let me know how it reads, if there are any discrepancies with the characters, if I need to revise my writing style a bit, and if you think it is a believable premise that Sachiko has loved Yumi for sometime and that Yumi is still too innocent to think of Sachiko in such a way. I really want to get this one _right_.

And plot suggestions if you have any, of course.

Thanks


	2. Chapter 2

Yumi groaned.

She'd just closed the door of the Career Guidance office, managing only to escape by the skin of her teeth. She hadn't answered a single question properly, as far as the teacher in that office was concerned.

_What are my strengths? What are my weaknesses?_ She'd tried hard to examine her skills over the past couple of weeks but nothing came to mind. She wasn't involved with any clubs or activities, like Touko-chan, who was now president of the Drama Club even though she was only in her second year, or Yoshino and Nana, who were both in the Kendo Club. She didn't have great athletic prowess, or any talent for journalism, so joining the Lilian Kawaraban would be out of the question, and she could only cook basic foods. _Touko, Yoshino-san and Nana-chan are so lucky to have these abilities,_ she thought begrudgingly. _And Shimako-san... Well, Shimako-san doesn't need a specific skill, she's just good at whatever she turns a hand to!_

Yumi blew a stray lock of hair from her face in irritation, sulking. The only thing she seemed to be good at was hanging back and not getting in anyone's way, and her grades had stubbornly remained blissfully average.

Disappointed, she stopped by Maria-sama and asked for guidance. Everyone seemed to have found their place in life except for her, and she was becoming startlingly aware that she would not have the shelter of Lilian Girls' School over her forever. She didn't want to become a burden to the rest of her friends by having them worry about her but she also didn't want them to leave her behind.

'Hello, Yumi-sama! I knew I'd find you here. You are always asking for something, aren't you?'

Yumi smiled at Touko-chan, grateful for her interruption. It was becoming a wonderful habit of hers, interrupting her older sister just in the nick of time to stop her from getting lost in her discouraging thoughts.

'Yes, Touko-chan! I am always asking Maria-sama to make you call me onee-sama, as you should!'

They both laughed together, and Yumi's racing mind settled down a little as she held an arm out to her petite-soeur.

She supposed that, really, she should be concerned that they hadn't removed the honorifics when speaking with one another, after all, Yumi frequently referred to Touko as 'Touko' in her head. There was something between them, though, that suggested it was irrelevant right now, and she was certain that in the future there would come a time when it would happen naturally, so she didn't want to force the issue. She enjoyed the banter they shared surrounding the subject; it reminded her of her relationship with Yuuki, the playful teasing of one sibling by another, and Yumi beamed as she thought how it made Touko the sister that wasn't actually born into the family, but found her way there eventually.

_Very different to onee-sama and I_, she acknowledged. Of course, it wasn't that she didn't feel close to Sachiko-sama, far from it... But it was different. Something she couldn't quite put into words. Like, if she tried to imagine Sachiko-sama as her older sister, by blood, there was something inside Yumi that told her she wouldn't feel the same towards her.

She tried a comparison, as she had with Yuuki and Touko.

There were certain traits that Yuuki and Sachiko-sama shared, such as the inability to control their respective tempers when backed into a figurative corner. When Yuuki got angry, it was just a pain. _But when onee-sama got angry, there was only pain in my heart because I hated that she wasn't smiling..._ She wondered if that feeling would carry over if they were blood siblings?

_But, it isn't a pain to me when Touko-chan's angry either..._ _Unless it's over silly things..._

The faces in Yumi's mind started spinning and morphing into each other then so she shook off her thoughts. _No point in giving myself mental motion sickness..._

'What is Auntie cooking tonight then, Yumi-sama?' Touko asked, linking her arm into Yumi's. 'I hope we have Koshi-Hikari rice again! She makes that rice so tasty, even though it's such a generic st-' She clapped a hand over her mouth and flushed red at her insensitive words, staring at Yumi in apology. It seemed she hadn't forgotten last summer.

Yumi smiled kindly. 'Don't worry, Touko-chan,' she said. 'I know that you are really complimenting my mother.' They'd walked a little way towards the gate already, heading for the bus stop. Yumi winked at Touko-chan and signalled for her to keep walking. 'Besides, the less she spends on rice, the more fried chicken she gets that you like so much!'

With a little skip, Touko followed Yumi out of the school grounds. 'Yumi-sama knows me well.'

Yumi's heart warmed at how friendly they had become over the past few months. She had been worried at first that on becoming Yumi's petite-soeur, Touko would still be hard on the outside with her, despite her true fragility. She was especially worried that she would regret revealing her secret, and close herself off again as she did before.

But now they sat together on the bus, talking all the way home about foods that they both love to eat, or plays that Touko-chan wants to perform, or Kanako-chan's upcoming basketball game, and Yumi discovered her fears were unfounded and that she just had to let Touko be who she was. It _was_ different to her own soeur relationship with onee-sama, but it was right for them. Touko-chan didn't need the co-dependency that Yumi and her grande-soeur shared, but for Yumi to stand back and give her the freedom to show more of herself to the world, little by little.

She thought of Shimako-san and Sei-sama, feeling the birth of understanding stir inside her somewhat. Theirs was a bond that she'd been unable to comprehend for the most part, but now she was beginning to get it.

The gift of freedom to become, and the silent encouragement of friendship.

* * *

'Thank you so much, teacher!'

Her bright little eyes were shining with thanks. Sachiko beamed down at the little girl.

'And in English you say...' she asked playfully, raising her eyebrows.

'Th-thank you, Miss!' came the enthusiastic, if slightly halted, reply.

Sachiko's little student turned and ran over to her father, clutching the lollipop desperately to her chest as though it were a priceless heirloom. She tugged on his sleeve in the doorway, showing him what Ogasawara-sensei had given her for doing such good work, and he ruffled her pigtailed hair proudly.

'Thank you very much for taking her on as a student, Ogasawara-sama,' her mother said, bowing politely. 'She has always shown a lot of potential at school. We wanted to find a good tutor of English to broaden her horizons.'

Sachiko watched the little girl happily running down the garden path, waving the sweet and looking at the flowers.

'You are thinking of her learning abroad?' she asked.

'Yes, Miss. We wouldn't want to force her to go, but if she chooses to in the future, we'd like to prepare for it.' They continued talking on their way down to the entrance gate. Sachiko followed the child with her eyes, marvelling at her energy.

Upon entering education, Sachiko found from a young age that she had a talent for languages, English being her forte as she'd had a private pronunciation tutor come to her home at her father's request, giving her an edge over other students her age. It was one of the few useful, conscientious things he'd arranged for her. At least, she'd thought of it as such until she found out that it was to aid her in inheriting the family business with Suguru-san, who had received the same tutelage. It wasn't because of the arranged marriage- she'd known from a very young age that she was betrothed to him- but to Sachiko, it had cheapened what she'd originally thought of as an encouraging gesture of pride from her father.

When she entered university she decided to volunteer as an English teacher in Lilian Girls' Elementary School to put her talent to good use. She'd thought of it when she was still in high school, but with her duties in the Yamayurikai, she didn't want to overstretch herself. At university, she'd forgone joining the student council or any other extra-curricular activities within its grounds so that she could find time to teach.

It had turned out to be an excellent decision. The first time she stood in front of their attentive little faces, teaching them English translations of nursery rhymes, she knew that it was what she wanted to do. The world was a blank, open book for these children and she wanted them to have wonderful things to write in it.

'Thank you again, Miss,' the older woman said to Sachiko, bowing once more. 'I know Ogasawara-sama must be very busy with her studies and her extra work, so we can't tell you how much we appreciate your taking the time to tutor our little Ami-chan.'

Sachiko waved at Ami through the car window as she was being safely buckled into the backseat by her father. Her brown bunches bobbed up and down as she grinned and waved energetically back with her sweet-holding hand, the stubby little six-year-old fingers gripping it tightly. She was the friendliest little girl Sachiko had ever met, wanting always to make the other students feel happy and helping them if ever she could. She would talk to all of them, even those who were obviously different to her, without so much of a nod to it.

'She reminds me a lot of someone who is very dear to me,' Sachiko admitted, still waving as Ami's mother made her way to the passenger seat. 'You are very lucky to have such a special daughter.'

'Thank you, Ogasawara-sama,' she said. 'She is very lucky to have a teacher who is so approachable and kind.' She climbed into the car and closed the door.

Sachiko was shocked. Not once in her life had someone coloured her as 'approachable'. She slowly brought her hand down from where it had frozen in surprise in mid-air and turned back up the path.

'BYE-BYE, SENSEI!'

'Ogasawara-sensei' laughed quietly as she heard Ami-chan's goodbye from behind her, inelegant but completely from the heart. She began to make her way back home under the pink sunset and grinned all the way at the accompanying thought.

_Yumi, it seems you're not so unique after all._

_

* * *

_

'Hello, we've come home!' Yumi called from inside the front door.

She took Touko-chan's satchel from her, placing it together with her own next to the small table in the hall, as her petite-soeur hung up their jackets.

'Ah, Yumi-chan, didn't I tell you to take your umbrella today?' Her mother appeared brandishing a hand towel and pointed it at Yumi. 'It could have been raining today.'

Yumi giggled and bowed. 'Please forgive me, okaa-san, but it wasn't raining today.'

'And what if it did and you had caught cold?' Her mom raised an eyebrow, smiling now.

'But I didn't, I caught the sunshine!' Yumi laughed and went over for the resulting hug.

It was something they had played when she came in from school as a child. It used to end with okaa-san asking for a ray of sunlight before the welcoming cuddle, but it had been shortened as she got older and they'd played the game less. This was the first time in many months that her mother had initiated this childishness, but Yumi was pleased. It meant that she missed her.

'Dinner will be ready soon, Yumi. Perhaps start your homework until then?' Okaa-san suggested.

'Okay,' Yumi said and turned to Touko-chan who stood in the hall uncomfortably. 'Come on Touko-chan, homework before dinner!' she said, oblivious, and took her by the hand, leading her upstairs.

The desk wasn't big enough for them both to work at, so Yumi graciously bequeathed it to Touko for her math work and she sat back against the headboard of her bed, reading the chapter of her history textbook that had been assigned this morning.

After a few minutes, she heard a quiet voice.

'I've never seen anyone act like that at home.'

Yumi looked over to her petite-soeur from the book. She was sitting delicately with her hands clasped on her knees, a pensive expression dark in her eyes. The desk had remained untouched.

'Touko-chan? You're not going to do your homework?' Yumi asked, confused.

'It's still in my satchel, in the hall,' she answered quietly. A little huffily, she added, 'You didn't give me much time to get it, Yumi-sama.'

'Oh, I'm so sorry, Touko-chan! I'll get it for you now!' she squealed, and got up from the bed. Just as she turned the handle, she heard Touko's voice again.

'I've never seen someone with their mother like that. It's... different to how I was raised. And Sachiko-sama. And all others in our family...'

Yumi let go of the door and walked softly to the desk. She placed a calming hand on her little sister's shoulder and Touko-chan looked up at her with a combination of wonder and pain, breaking Yumi's heart. She reached around and pulled her into a hug, happy to feel arms embrace her in return. _Touko-chan is still so fragile, _she reminded herself. She fought the urge to say so to her petite-soeur, knowing that Touko would probably distance herself this evening if Yumi were to mention it; she still shied away from things that illuminated her _real_ character.

Yumi pulled back first and smiled down at Touko-chan with a wink. 'Well, you'd better get used to it, Touko-chan!' she said loudly, and skipped over to the door. She turned back and gave a big thumbs up to her soeur. 'This is your family too, now!'

Touko visibly relaxed and Yumi nodded to herself in satisfaction as she exited the room. Sharing time was over and, this time, she'd managed to come up as the victorious party against Touko-chan, unlike the other morning by Maria-sama. She shook her head with a grin as she descended the stairs, remembering the badinage to get Touko to call her onee-sama. She picked up the satchels and told them as they all went back up, 'Now it's Touko-chan one, Yumi-chan one! Was it this difficult with me, onee-sama?'

'Oh, is Sachiko-sama here?'

'YAAHH!' Yumi tripped on the last step and her face hit the carpet.

Yuuki laughed heartily. 'Hahaha! Yumi-chan! You're so comical!'

'Yuuki! You surprised me!' She brushed down her uniform and the satchels and shot him a sidelong glare. 'And you shouldn't laugh at your onee-san!'

Suddenly, she remembered his words. 'Yuuki! Did you say onee-sama was here?'

He coolly rested a hand in his pocket and leant against the wall. 'No, I _asked_ if she was here. I heard voices from your room.'

Yumi fought her disappointment. It had been silly to be so shocked at thinking onee-sama was here. She had never come over before, and she wouldn't turn up uninvited anyway, especially without Yumi. _Besides, _Yumi wondered to herself, _what is there to be worried about if she did?_

'Who's in your room, then, Yumi-chan? Has Yoshino-san come to visit again?' He made a move to open Yumi's door.

'No, it's Touko-chan I was talking with. I'm just bringing her homework up because I forgot it.' She blushed. 'Yoshino-san is at Kendo tonight, anyway. She told you her practice nights. One of them is Wednesday.'

Yuuki and Yoshino-chan had found a common ground with Ikenami Shoutarou whilst Lilian and Hanadera collaborated on their school festivals the previous year. Continuing from there, they'd found they shared many interests and a solid friendship had developed. Now when Yoshino came to visit, Yumi would find that it was because she wanted to spend time with Yuuki just as much as she did with Yumi. She clasped her hands hopefully in her heart, secretly hoping for more. It had hit her suddenly one day as they were talking that they would be such a good match, especially considering Yuuki's laidback nature. Yumi had observed that one needed to be fairly easy-going if they wanted to be with Yoshino-chan from her sisterhood with Rei-sama.

'Touko-chan!' Yuuki's hand stopped. He backed away from the door, blushing. 'Oh, then I... uh... I should leave you to that work.'

Yumi paled. 'But... but Yoshino-chan?' she said quietly to herself, and then snickered at his unintentional revelation. Honestly, Yuuki was so transparent.

'Yuuki-chan, don't be so silly,' she teased, slapping him playfully. 'Touko-chan will be happy to see you.'

He tried to wriggle away from her as she pushed him back towards the bedroom. _Boys are so silly, _she thought to herself. He was hard to manoeuvre, though. He'd gotten taller and heavier over the last few months.

'Yuuki-chan! What have you been eating! You're so heavy now!'

'Yumi!' he exclaimed, and shrugged her off, folding his arms in a sulk. 'Hmph! I could say the same about you, _onee-san_,' he drawled. 'You're not so light on your feet anymore either!'

An indignant fire flamed within her. 'Don't you call me fat, Yuuki-chan! How can you say such a thing to your older sister? How mean!'

'I didn't call you fat, Yumi, you're putting words into my mouth, just like always!'

'What do you mean, like always?'

What had begun as simple teasing had now spiralled into another sibling vaudeville. _He must really be quite conscious of Touko-chan, _she observed.

'Hmph!' he huffed, turning his head away.

'You're just annoyed because you think Touko-chan is listening!' It was a low blow that Yumi regretted as soon as she said it; as easy-going as Yuuki was, he could have a temper when it came to sensitive issues.

His face flushed scarlet with embarrassment and anger, but he quickly recovered. So quickly, in fact, that she could tell he had something special to say up his sleeve. Thankfully, a shout from her mother stopped him in his tracks.

'Yumi! Yuuki! Be quiet and come downstairs. We have another visitor.'

Brother and sister turned in unison. 'Eh!'

They hadn't heard the knock on the front door over their arguing, but there, stood in the open doorway, was their second dinner guest of the evening.

Yuuki beat her to it.

'Sempai!'


	3. Chapter 3

Yumi couldn't help herself from eyeing him warily across the table. _What are _you_ doing here?_ she thought in his direction, quite rudely. He'd noticed her latent hostility already, of course, but brushed it off with a private wink just for her.

It irritated her even more.

'Sempai, please have some rice,' Yuuki said politely, offering the bowl to his left. He'd looked about as shocked as Yumi felt at his unexpected arrival. Luckily, the other three meal participants were oblivious to the underlying tension.

'You should, onii-sama. Oba-san makes wonderful rice,' Touko-chan chimed in. She smiled happily between Yumi's mother and Kashiwagi-san.

_Hmph_, Yumi pouted internally, wondering what qualified him for such kind treatment from Touko.

They were all kneeling around the Fukuzawa's modest dinner table; Kashiwagi-san and Yuuki seated on one side, Yumi and Touko-chan on the other. Her parents occupied each end. Bowls of rice, fried chicken, and vegetables were crossing hands, their contents spilling onto plates.

'So I heard from Sa-chan,' he replied to Touko-chan and grinned smugly at Yumi. She dissolved further into her sulk. _He always has to point out how much closer he is to onee-sama. Is it any wonder I was jealous?_

'Actually, Yumi-chan, we were discussing you earlier today. She seemed quite distressed that you have not visited yet.' He spooned some more rice onto his plate, ignoring Yumi's sudden discomfort. _Onee-sama talks about me? To you?_

He raised a brow at her surreptitiously and then quickly segued again to another subject. 'You were right, Touko. This is very nice indeed.'

Yumi fumed. He seemed to be here just to wind her up.

Touko-chan beamed at him, and her mother blushed. 'It is only rice, Kashiwagi-san.' She seemed all a-fluster.

_Now he is charming my parents too!_ She thought, incredulously.

'Call me by my given name, please. We are like family now,' he beseeched in a sickly sweet tone. Her mother tittered accordingly.

_Of course, _she mumbled in her head. _Butter them up. Flattery is supposed to get you everywhere, isn't it?_

She reflected on his words, though- he had a point, and it shocked her a little.

In her (admittedly limited) experience, rarely were there two families that overlapped quite so much, having never come into contact beforehand.

She might just be being naive, but it seemed fairly surprising that whilst she had become Sachiko-sama's petite-soeur, Kashiwagi-san had taken 'Yukichi' under his wing, so to speak. Adding Touko to the mix as another relative of the Ogasawara household shortly after had created yet another strong tie between the families.

Yumi had never really given it much thought before. The world of high school always seems quite removed from reality, with its own elections and, she supposed, governing factions, so it tended to envelop one's thoughts. It was like its own little community; there were acquaintances in your class who were like neighbours, strangers whose names you'd never learned despite spending nearly every day on the same campus for fourteen years, much like the faces that pass by in the city. And of course, most importantly, were the dear friends that you made, the people that were given passes into your life outside of school. Somehow, this had occurred to a striking degree between Yumi's family and Sachiko-sama's family, and Yumi hadn't noticed.

She mentally kicked herself for her ignorance but, following that, a deep curiosity welled with her. Yumi had never put much stock in fate- it was always a half-thought that hovered around the outside of her brain as she tried to puzzle out situations- but she couldn't close it out now. Onee-sama would probably think her silly for considering such a thing, but she couldn't help it. Their families had become intertwined when, ordinarily, they would never have met.

She smiled to herself. This epiphany, although it hadn't fundamentally changed anything, made her much more interested in how their relationships would develop in the future. Kashiwagi-san hadn't stepped on any toes when he'd invited himself over for dinner- her parents had said themselves that they love guests- he had come, in fact, to appoint himself emissary of his family.

And Yumi, although she couldn't be sure, had a feeling that he was doing it for her benefit.

Yumi looked at Kashiwagi-san as he talked with her father. She still didn't like him very much- he was cocky, self-centred and had hurt Sachiko-sama- but, suddenly, he didn't seem so uninvited anymore.

'Yes, speaking of family, Yumi-chan said you are Ogasawara-sama's cousin, Suguru-san?' Her father enquired. The latter nodded, helping himself to the vegetables again. He didn't seem too concerned with the chicken. 'Yes, there is a striking resemblance, isn't there, Yumi?'

Yumi, embarrassed at his audacity, flushed red and nodded. 'Yes.'

Shutting down her previous train of thought, she wondered exactly what okaa-san had said to her dad about Yumi and Kashiwagi's acquaintance. She hadn't yet forgiven her mother's insinuation about his potential as a husband but it seemed that otou-san was getting in on the game now. It was as if he was implying that Kashiwagi-san was the male counterpart of Sachiko-sama.

And _everyone_ knew how highly Yumi thought of her onee-sama.

'Especially around the eyes,' her mother added.

Yumi fought down the powerful urge to point out how wrong her parents were, purely on the basis that it would be rude to do so.

While she conceded that, yes, superficially, it was true- the cousins had the same eye shape and colour- they were a _world_ apart. Kashiwagi-san's eyes radiated an arrogance and mischievousness that Yumi didn't doubt would pull in a certain type of woman (or man, she reminded herself) but she had no time for them at all. Whenever she looked at him, she could see nothing but a pale imitation of Sachiko-sama's beautiful, serious eyes. Eyes that, with every nuance, could chide her, encourage her, support her, laugh with her, guide her, send her heart soaring up into her throat and bring it crashing back down again... No-one else could ever have eyes like Sachiko-sama's.

_Onee-sama... _She felt a weight settle in her chest.

At that moment, Yumi missed her so much that her heart ached, and she couldn't bring herself to speak anymore, so she settled back onto her knees and ate her rice slowly.

The table fell silent for a short while after that.

It had become obvious to everyone that Yumi was a little upset but they didn't press her for an explanation, instead settling into a slightly tense meal. Nobody was quite sure what to say.

It was Kashiwagi-san who eventually took pity on her and broke the atmosphere.

'Yukichi, how is Hanadera faring under you without me?'

It was said politely enough but Yumi noticed Yuuki's back tense ever so slightly.

'So far, so good,' he mumbled, chewing his chicken sullenly. Yumi's dad noticed the tone and elbowed him a little.

Kashiwagi chuckled. He hadn't missed the nudge. 'And you, Yumi-chan. Bearing Sa-chan's mantle well?' His eyes glittered across the table. Yumi sighed inwardly. _It's like he can see right through me..._ 'Perhaps, you should visit Sa-chan soon, eh, Yumi-chan? It must be quite stressful, taking on so much responsibility in the Yamayurikai.'

Yumi looked around. All faces had turned to her expectantly.

'Why don't you, Yumi? You have been coming home later, recently,' her mother suggested. 'A little time with Ogasawara-sama would be a nice break, I'm sure.'

Yumi, feeling suddenly as though she were being scrutinized by everyone, nodded her agreement.

'O-of course,' she said, hesitating.

Truthfully, she was apprehensive about it. Yumi had spent time with onee-sama outside of school before on their dates and holidays, of course, and there was nothing to suggest to her that it would be awkward at all now... but Yumi couldn't help but feel that meeting her soeur would be different this time. After all, they hadn't seen each other whilst at separate schools and quite some time had passed since they'd spoken even on the phone.

She supposed that it all came down to the fact that she didn't want to find out that onee-sama had moved on. How could she deal with that? Finding out that she was just another part of Lilian High School that onee-sama had graduated from? Especially after feeling so elated about the bonds between their families.

She poked her vegetables idly around the plate. She was being self-centred, she knew, and probably quite childish, but it had been niggling at her for some time now, and had built up into a Worry.

She put her chopsticks down with a huff, feeling as though she were being shoved forward into something she wasn't prepared for. She wasn't ready to be the one to initiate a visit- she needed to get her bearings first. But how could she tell something like that to everyone? It would sound silly and cowardly and they would say 'but she's your onee-sama! What have you got to be nervous about?'

_And you knew that, didn't you, Mr. Ginkgo Prince?_

Regardless of the consequences, she looked up at him with an all-out glare.

Kashiwagi-san caught her off guard, though.

He met her stare with serious, unguarded eyes and, suddenly, she could read him like a book. Without a spoken word, he said again something that she had forgotten.

'_If you're not an enemy, then what are you?' She'd asked, clueless._

'_A friend.' He winked._

Yumi came to a decision.

'Okaa-san,' she spoke up, looking at her mom. 'May I be excused? I'm going to call onee-sama, if you don't mind my leaving the table.'

Her mother smiled. 'Of course, Yumi. Go ahead.'

She nodded to Touko-chan, who grinned back encouragingly, and stood up to leave, not missing the glow of approval in Kashiwagi-san's dark, familiar eyes before she closed the door behind her.

Sachiko had been reading in her room as usual when the telephone rang. She hadn't made a move to get it. People rarely called for her, especially so late in the day; it was after eight now and the sky had begun to darken.

This was why she was so shocked when, shortly after the ringing stopped, she heard a soft knock on her door.

'Come in,' she said in its direction, curious. Her mother entered bearing the receiver and a smile.

'It's Yumi-chan for you, Sachiko-san.'

Sachiko took the phone, thanking her as she left the room again, and pushed the book away. _Yumi? _

She swallowed slowly and tried to steady her racing heartbeat. They hadn't spoken for well over two weeks now and her initial reaction to the call had been panic. Her mind had immediately jumped to the conclusion that Yumi was in some kind of trouble, that she was lost or stranded (or worse- both), and that she was calling because she needed help. Sachiko sensibly quelled the fear, though. She would have known if there was anything wrong long before now.

With hands shaking slightly, she raised the phone to her ear. 'Yumi?'

Her voice cracked a little with emotion. _It's been so long, Yumi..._

'Onee-sama?' Sachiko let her eyes close. _So long..._ Settling back against the headboard, her body relaxed into the calm that Yumi's sweet voice brought with it, even as she felt her heart start to race again. It never failed to amaze her, this innate ability that Yumi had. One part of her was so still and so at peace with everything, frozen in time with her petite-soeur's bright eyes looking up at her; the other part, shaking with nerves.

She yearned to hold Yumi again, to feel her breath close against her neck in the cold night air as she caressed her soft, sleek hair. Sachiko raised a hand over her heart, closing it tightly around her shirt.

'Yes, Yumi, I'm here.'

'I'm glad you answered, onee-sama. I hope I didn't interrupt your studies.' It came across quite breathless on the phone and she chuckled softly inside. _She's nervous._ Sachiko wondered if she sounded the same on Yumi's end.

'Not at all,' she lied, glancing at the book beside her.

'Oh, good.' A brief silence passed. Sachiko could practically hear Yumi's brain working, trying to think of something to say, and she grinned at the thought of her charming face twisting with the effort.

'I'm glad you called, Yumi. Are you well?' she asked, partly to relieve her, but with genuine interest. She'd been thinking of her more and more as the days passed; how her schooling was going, how she was faring in the Yamayurikai, how she was handling the obstinate Touko-chan...

'I am, onee-sama.' She sounded relieved. 'Busy, but well. And you? How is the university? Have you spoken to Sei-sama again recently?'

Sachiko fought off a sharp pang of jealousy. She'd mentioned her meeting with Sei to Yumi once when she'd called and had been bombarded with questions about the former Rosa Gigantea. It had been an idle comment on Sachiko's part, a slip of the tongue really, but Yumi had caught the name and ran with it. It was okay at the time, she had been content enough to indulge the subject only to hear Yumi's voice, but she didn't want to talk about Sei this time. She wanted to hear about Yumi.

'I haven't spoken with her since, actually, but yes, my studies are going very well. I'm... enjoying it.' She was hesitant to tell her petite-soeur that. She didn't want Yumi to think that she was having too much fun without her, but she didn't want to lie to her, either.

'I'm sorry I haven't been in touch much, onee-sama. Um...' Sachiko heard her falter. 'I've been nervous to call, actually.' _Sweet, honest Yumi._

'Well, I'm happy you did. I've been thinking of you, hoping to hear some news.'

'Really?' Yumi's tone brightened and Sachiko smiled to herself.

'Of course,' she replied. 'So how is the Yamayurikai, Rosa Chinensis?'

'Onee-sama! You can't call me Rosa Chinensis!'

'Of course I can. You are, aren't you?' Sachiko teased.

'Yes, but... it's embarrassing...' Yumi sighed. 'It's not the same without you, onee-sama...'

Her heart ached. She longed to say that she wished she were still there, that they were all still together in the Rose Mansion, drinking tea and talking about trivial things, things that meant nothing and everything to her.

'It will pass quickly, though, Yumi,' she said instead, her heart heavy with nostalgia. 'One day you will be looking forward to summer break and then, suddenly, someone will hand a certificate to you, congratulate you on your achievements and you will have to say goodbye to your dearest friends...'

She heard Yumi's soft breathing down the receiver. 'Onee-sama...'

Sachiko found herself by the window, staring out at the twilit sky. She hadn't meant to reveal so much but Yumi had always brought this honesty out of her, shattering her defences right from the start. She had once told Touko-chan that it was as if she were a mirror that reflected one's weaknesses with pure and perfect clarity. However, she'd stopped short of disclosing the beauty of it. Partly, it was because she didn't want to hand all of the answers to her cousin, knowing some things must be discovered on one's own. But she also selfishly kept to herself Yumi's real blessing; her absolute acceptance of those imperfections as a part of who you are, and her unfailing support in anything and everything you choose.

Suddenly aware that she had been quiet for some time, Sachiko gathered her courage and steeled herself to request Yumi's company on a date.

_One would think that these things get easier with practice_, she thought wryly, but her fingers were gripping the curtain tightly.

'Yumi? Are you busy on Sunday?'

It was possible that she had other plans, but Sachiko gamely went ahead and asked. She'd be damned if she was going to lose to her own fear of rejection.

She heard a breath catch on the line and crossed her fingers in her heart.

'What? I mean, no! I'm not busy at all on Sunday.'

A little voice inside Sachiko cheered. 'Would you like to go for a picnic?' she asked.

'Of course! Onee-sama knows how much I like food!' Relieved, she laughed along with Yumi.

'Not too far. Perhaps just in a nearby park. Would that be okay?'

'Yes, that would be fine!' It was wonderful to hear Yumi so enthused at the idea.

'I hope it doesn't rain...' Sachiko said, absent-mindedly.

'Don't worry, onee-sama, we'll just take our umbrellas!'

Sachiko turned from the window. There was no place in her heart for the creeping darkness now, not with the sunshine she had to look forward to on Sunday. Yumi's easy dismissal of any possible bad weather proved to Sachiko that she genuinely wanted to go, that not even nature could keep them apart, and a melting warmth flourished in her chest.

'I'll bring some corn and fruit sandwiches, oh, and some of okaa-san's karaage fried chicken and rice! You remember, don't you?' Sachiko certainly did remember, and she was touched that Yumi had also not forgotten how much she liked it. 'Kashiwagi-san said today that you had told him about the rice, although, he didn't seem very keen on the chicken...'

Sachiko sat bolt upright. 'Suguru-san? You've seen him today?'

'Uh, well, yes,' Yumi stuttered. 'H-he turned up for dinner this evening.'

Sachiko's throat burned and a previous conversation came crashing into her memory.

'_Suguru-san, do you like Yumi?'_

'_What do you mean? I...' He'd been too late in hiding his shock from her._

'_I see,' she said to him. 'I'm sorry.'_

He had asked her not to misunderstand him; that it was just another variant of like, but the implications were clear. Sachiko, on her part, could only apologise that he would lose their newfound rivalry.

'_If I had to balance out my love, I would say that I love you far more than Yumi-chan.'_

'_A different kind of love, right?'_

Afterwards, she'd rolled it over and over in her mind. The only conclusion that she could draw was that there was familial love for her, and something different for Yumi, something unique. He'd blatantly admitted to as much before praising her insight. She'd seen no cause for concern at the time, disregarding it, but to have Yumi tell her that he'd shown up for dinner...

Sachiko wasn't jealous yet, but she was suspicious.

'Onee-sama?' Yumi's halted words brought her attention back to the current conversation.

'Sorry, Yumi. I'm just a little surprised, that's all. Suguru-san doesn't often stay in one place for more than 20 minutes,' she covered.

'Oh... Yes, I can believe that, to be honest.' She sounded as if she were smiling. 'Did he not mention to you earlier that he would be visiting my house, onee-sama?'

_Earlier? _Sachiko wondered. 'Earlier?'

'Earlier today, when you spoke about m- , I mean, about my family,' Yumi confirmed.

'But I ha-' Sachiko stopped, and then chuckled subtly to herself.

'No,' she said finally. 'No, he didn't mention it.'

Yumi didn't need to know that he'd not been near her in over a week and that he was, in fact, just interfering in something she would have liked to handle herself. Sachiko sighed. She supposed this was his way of trying to show his love, by persuading them both into opportune situations.

'I'm looking forward to Sunday, Yumi,' she said suddenly, letting him win for now. 'And to the delicious karaage chicken that Suguru-san turned his nose up at.'

'I am too, onee-sama, and I'll bring some sweets for us to share!'

Yumi launched happily into conversation about her favourite foods, what they could do at the park, what Touko-chan did yesterday, and Sachiko rested back against the head of the bed for the last time. She spoke up whenever she felt the need to, but mostly she was content sit with her eyes closed and imagine that they were together again, seated around the table upstairs in the Rose Mansion, as Yumi's melodious voice wove around her like a lullaby.

* * *

**Chapter Four – preview.**

''_The car had been stuffy, as it often was on sunny days, but Sachiko had fresh air and good food to look forward to, not to mention Yumi's company; she always made the sun shine brighter, and the air feel clearer, so Sachiko had dealt with the car like a champ. Nevertheless, she was relieved when they finally pulled up to the park._

_She spotted Yumi right away, stood with her back to the open gate, checking this way and that for someone's approach, but Sachiko hesitated, deciding to sit for a second before going to greet her. There was no anxiety left in her- she'd abused her nerves thoroughly over the last few days in anticipation of their date, leaving only a calm confidence. She waited because she wanted to take a moment to just look and savour it…''_

**Sunday is coming, guys... You wanted the date, you got the date.**


	4. Chapter 4

The rest of the week was uneventful for Yumi.

She was glad, in a way; the school calendar would undoubtedly become more and more cluttered after the summer holidays if her last two years were anything to go by, and the less drama that occurred day to day gave her more time to focus on her classes. Having Shimako-san as Rosa Gigantea for the second year running was also a godsend. She'd conscientiously taken more of a dominant role in the Yamayurikai this year and headed the meetings, considerate of Yoshino's dedication to Kendo and Yumi's need to give greater attention to her studies. Yumi knew she wasn't the kind of person who would outright say it, but Shimako's academic ability naturally outstretched her own.

On the other hand, having little to distract her meant that the days passed slowly on the run up to Sunday.

Saturday evening, especially, was _dreadful_.

By eight o'clock, she'd already packed the picnic bag for the following day, which sat waiting in the refrigerator for morning, and chosen what to wear, so Yumi found herself sat staring at her outfit with stiff limbs. She'd turned her alarm clock to face the window early on, heaving a relieved sigh that it was digital and not one of those manual ones. Her mind was tick-tock-ing enough as it was; she didn't need it to echo in her ears. _Knowing my luck it would be out of sync, anyway._

Falling back onto the bed, she started idly drumming on the quilt with her fingers. This would be the first date they'd had together alone since the amusement park. _And look how well _that _ended_, Yumi pointed out to herself. It also suddenly felt like a very, very long time ago.

What should she talk about? Yumi didn't want to broach the subject of the student council tomorrow, not with how sad it had made onee-sama on the phone. Obviously, it had been her grande-soeur that had brought it up at the time but after how terribly forlorn she'd sounded, Yumi had decided to avoid discussing the Yamayurikai altogether, on the phone _and_ on their date.

She stood up and began to pace. There was Touko-chan, of course, or Yuuki, or the rest of her family. These would do for a start, she supposed. _Not_ _Kashiwagi-san._

Yumi turned to the mirror and gave her face a quick appraisal. It was clear of the usual teenage blemishes and pimples, and her eyes didn't look as heavy as they had done recently, but she wasn't really looking for those things; she'd always known she was lucky to have naturally clear skin and she'd been trying to get more rest recently so she wasn't concerned with her appearance; she was just looking for a little encouragement.

_Can we swap places tomorrow? _Yumi begged her reflection. _I'll rest easy behind the glass and you can do the nerve-wracking things for a change. It'll be a swish for you. Everyone knows that reflections can't get nervous._

Yumi facepalmed. 'Oh god, what is wrong with me? Why is this so difficult?'

Her reflection stared at her curiously.

'It's only onee-sama,' she told it.

Reflection-Yumi shrugged.

'Sure, _you_ don't mind,' she pointed out huffily. 'How about this, then: You go be charming and interesting and make sure she has a really good day. Tell me all about it when you get back and we'll go back to normal. Win-win!'

She sighed- it wasn't, though, and she knew it. When they'd spoken on the phone, Yumi had craved the skinship that they used to have, longed for it, whether it was just the casual brush of onee-sama fixing her collar, or hanging off her arm as they walked to and from Rose Mansion. She missed how warm and safe she felt when onee-sama embraced her, and how she used to right the ribbons in her hair, or tuck loose tufts of it behind her ear.

Her skin tingled with flesh memories and Yumi knew that she wouldn't give that up to anyone, not even her own reflection.

She eyed it with cool competition and it stared blankly back at her.

'I've changed my mind,' she said haughtily, and then, finally, realised that she was talking to her mirror.

Yumi fell forward onto her bed and slammed her face into the pillow.

* * *

It turned out to be a beautiful day, weather-wise.

The car had been stuffy, as it often was on sunny days, but Sachiko had fresh air and good food to look forward to, not to mention Yumi's company; she always made the sun shine brighter, and the air feel clearer, so Sachiko had dealt with the car like a champ. Nevertheless, she was relieved when they finally pulled up to the park.

She spotted Yumi right away, stood with her back to the open gate, checking this way and that for someone's approach, but Sachiko hesitated, deciding to sit for a second before going to greet her. There was no anxiety left in her- she'd abused her nerves thoroughly over the last few days in anticipation of their date, leaving only a calm confidence. She waited because she wanted to take a moment to just _look_ and savour it.

Yumi was taller, and she stood with so much more self-confidence than she used to; it showed even through her nervousness. Sachiko remembered briefly when they first met, when Yumi was timid and insecure and would flush red as soon as anyone so much as looked at her. Yet even then, Sachiko conceded, she'd shown a deep strength of character when she refused her rosary the first time. It was wonderful to see how that strength had developed, allowing Yumi to blossom into such a beautiful, self-assured young woman that Sachiko couldn't help but admire.

She chuckled wryly to herself, suddenly aware of the vague role-reversal, and got out of the car. Yumi's face split into a wide, shining smile upon seeing her and she rushed over.

'Onee-sama!' Yumi cried, and threw her arms around her in a fierce hug.

They stood together on the street like that for a while. Sachiko pressed her cheek against Yumi, inhaling her soft scent, and melted into the embrace. It felt like a lifetime had passed since the last time she'd held her petite-soeur, and she was reluctant to let go. The smaller girl's warmth circled her, wrapping her in a quilt of comfort that Sachiko was unaccustomed to. It had been strange at first, to have someone else's body so close to her own, to have someone so inside her personal space- as a family, the Ogasawaras did not generally hold each other- but she'd come to love it and, eventually, began to look for any excuse to hold Yumi again.

Self-consciousness soon reared its ugly head, however, as Sachiko realised that they were still on the sidewalk. Ironically, the former Rosa Chinensis and high school princess was not fond of drawing attention to herself.

Also, she could feel the picnic basket digging into her back.

'Yumi?' she said, pulling away from her and hiding a wince, 'shall we find somewhere to sit?'

'Sure!' Yumi moved to Sachiko's side, linking their arms, but after a few steps, Sachiko took hold of her hand and entwined their fingers as they walked; waiting so long to be near Yumi deserved a more personal contact. It was wonderful. The sensitive skin of her palm tingled as it greeted Yumi's. It was almost as if it were sighing with pleasure at the reunion.

'Onee-sama, shall we put the blanket down under that tree?' Yumi pointed out a tall, regal pine with branches that spread unusually wide.

Sachiko smiled at the suggestion, touched by Yumi's desire to shield her from the midday sun._ Which one of us is onee-sama?_ She thought playfully, and nodded to Yumi, who visibly flushed with pride.

They made their way over and set the blanket down on the grass by the tree's roots.

Sachiko would have been happy to help set everything up, but as soon as it had been laid, Yumi signalled for her to sit. She obliged, and settled down with a shocked expression as her soeur began to remove things that Sachiko didn't anticipate seeing.

Along with the picnic cloth, basket of food, and drinks, Yumi had also packed cutlery and plates for their date and Sachiko could only marvel at her thoughtfulness. She knew that it was not the Fukuzawas' common practice to carry dinnerware; she'd seen first-hand at the Lilian Athletics Festival that they ate with chopsticks from the basket. Yet here she was, laying out the kitchenalia for both of them, just so Sachiko would feel at ease.

She was astounded, to say the least, not to mention flattered.

Sachiko sat stiffly staring the ensemble before her with wide eyes and a tight throat. There was pain tugging in her chest, as though her heart had been seized with a firm grip to stop its beating, to be reverent in the face of such kindness.

_What is this pain? _She was dumbfounded. _How can you love someone so much that it hurts?_

'O-onee-sama...?'

It was said so gently, so quietly, and with so much concern that Sachiko's heart twisted again. She closed her eyes for a moment. It would do no good to worry Yumi, who would undoubtedly misinterpret her reaction for something else if she carried on like this.

Raising her eyes and a smile, she looked at Yumi who had scooted over to her side inquisitively with a fearful expression.

'Don't worry, Yumi. I'm fine,' she said with sincerity. _Your sweetness is overwhelming._

'Really? You're blood pressure is okay?'

'Of course.' She patted Yumi's hand, and to prove it she flashed her most beatific smile. 'Let's eat.'

'Okay.'

Her petite-soeur immediately raised the plate of karaage fried chicken with a wide grin and Sachiko laughed from deep in her belly, the way that she laughs with Yumi and Yumi alone.

* * *

The sun continued to shine long into the afternoon as they spoke together over lemonade, touching on any and every subject that came to mind.

Much of Yumi's talk was centred around the Yamayurikai and its members, something Yumi had aimed to avoid, but what Sachiko had hoped to hear about.

It was mostly entertaining stories about their mutual friends; Yoshino-chan and Noriko-chan, as Sachiko suspected from two such outspoken individuals, had had numerous verbal spats about this and that; Touko-chan's iron rule in the Drama Club that had resulted in two members storming out and the two weeks of tension that had followed before Noriko-chan convinced her friend to make a formal apology; and of course, Yumi's self-declared bumbling effort to welcome Nana-chan with a toast that had culminated in the breakage of several tea cups.

Sachiko couldn't remember having such a wonderful time in the company of only one other person. She'd always considered herself to fail considerably when speaking one-on-one. Not because of disinterest or nervousness, she'd just often found that, as in groups, she would happily listen to idle chatter without engaging unless she had something of import to say. It was probably related to her dislike of attention.

Of course, that had changed somewhat over the last two years, and she knew it was Yumi's influence, just as Sei-sama had said.

Sachiko had never been a dour and displeased personality, but over the course of their relationship, Yumi had opened up a lighter part of her soul, a part that was less oppressed, less restricted. She didn't want to use a word like frivolous, but she _had_ found a playful side to herself. A side that laughed heartily as Yumi acted out what had happened during the 'Terrible Toast'- oh yes, Yumi had given it a name, it was _that_ disastrous- and a side that, in turn, relayed all the fun she had with the children that she taught.

'I bet onee-sama is a wonderful teacher!' Yumi gushed, with her hands clasped around her cutlery. 'I wish you had been my teacher!'

Sachiko laughed. 'But then we would never have been soeurs, Yumi. You would give that up?'

Yumi was horrified. 'Of course not!'

'As I thought,' Sachiko said and grinned smugly.

Sachiko considered briefly whether or not to tell Yumi about Ami-chan, but decided against it for the time being. She would have liked to introduce Yumi to her little double, and to the rest of the elementary class, but knew that it wouldn't be possible just yet owing to the amount of responsibility that Yumi had on her shoulders in her third and final year. Some things didn't come to Yumi quite as easily as they did to Sachiko. Besides, there was no way she could ask her petite-soeur to dismiss an afternoon of school for the sole purpose of meeting the students she taught on a Wednesday. It went against every sensibility she had.

Still, Sachiko wanted to welcome Yumi into all aspects of her life, especially something that brought her so much joy. And she had no doubt that Yumi would receive instant approval from the children.

Perhaps later in the school year when the third years had less obligation to attend class she would put forward the idea. It was time that one was supposed to allocate to studying for university entrance exams but Sachiko was fairly certain that Yumi would apply to Lilian Girls University via the escalator system, for which the grade requirements were considerably more relaxed. That, in turn, would free up some time for Yumi to accompany her one day.

Of course, Sachiko knew that Yumi wouldn't see it quite in the same way, and would probably study relentlessly so that she didn't embarrass Lilian or her onee-sama. As much as she had matured recently, she still had a considerable way to go to quash her self-deprecating nature. Sachiko knew very well that Yumi was in no way the simple-minded fool that she considered herself to be. She was smart, capable and intelligent, and merely needed to have a little more faith in her abilities.

It was something that she could tell Yumi, yes. Tell her that she needed to be confident in her skills and in her work ethic, tell her to have more trust in her competence. She could say it to her every day and night if that was what it would take, but Sachiko knew that even if she rallied together everyone that Yumi was close to and asked them to do the same, it still wouldn't be enough. Yumi would hear the words and worry that everyone had too high expectations of her, or even perhaps that she was being babied.

No, it was something that Yumi had to slowly learn for herself.

She wouldn't be alone, though, not by any stretch. She had silent support and gentle encouragement from her family, her friends, her teachers...

And of course, from Sachiko.

* * *

'You know, onee-sama, Yuuki has been acting very strange about Touko-chan recently.'

Sachiko stirred her drink idly with a straw as she leant against the solid pine trunk. She guessed from the position of the sun that it was around four o'clock now, and the air was cooling. 'Oh?'

'Mmm.' Yumi nodded. She was subconsciously mirroring Sachiko's movements, stirring the cold beverage as she decided exactly what to say about the situation.

'Last summer, before the school festival, we visited Kashiwagi-san to ask for his help with a certain project. Yuuki and I, I mean.'

Sachiko hummed a laugh. 'Yes, I remember. What was that absurdly long title you gave it? Operation Throw-Onee-sama-Into-A-Lion's-Den-To-Get-Her-Used-To-The-Bites-So-That-When-We-Perform-In-The-Circus-It-Won't-Be-So-Much-Of-A-Bother? Is that the one?'

Yumi fell about laughing as Sachiko related her own interpretation of the title. She had broken into loud laughter halfway through it, especially when she'd heard the chuckle in onee-sama's voice.

'Hahaha! Yes, yes, that one!' She wiped a stray tear from her eye. She was glad they could laugh about it so much now. It had seemed like such a heavy burden to carry at the time and even after she had confessed it all to Sachiko-sama, she'd still felt uneasy about her deception. Onee-sama had laid all that to rest now, though.

'So?' Sachiko cajoled. 'What happened at Suguru-san's? And what does it have to do with Touko-chan?'

'Well, it was after we left to catch the bus. I didn't really pay much attention to it at the time but... Yuuki said that he thought Touko-chan was cute.' Yumi didn't mean to sound quite so serious as she said it, but as she thought more about it, she realised that it was quite important.

'Oh?' Sachiko said for the second time, this time through a smile. 'Do you not agree?'

'Ehh!' Yumi's gaze shot from the drink she was looking into to Sachiko's playful eyes. 'Well, uh, yes, of course, but...'

She stumbled over her words, remembering (and omitting!) the following discussion of her own, very particular, taste.

'But?'

'Well, he said it again not long before she became my soeur last spring and recently, well...' She looked back down at her drink. 'He's been... shy. Around Touko-chan.'

Yumi wasn't sure why it was difficult to say this to Sachiko-sama. Perhaps because Touko-chan was her cousin or something. She didn't want to make out that it was a big deal, not yet, but she had a feeling she wasn't coming across as nonchalant about it as she'd planned to when she first thought of bringing up the subject.

Daring a sidelong glance at her onee-sama, she saw a soft smile playing on her lips.

'Don't worry, Yumi. If there is anything in this to talk about, we will know soon enough.'

Yumi relaxed and nodded. 'Yes, you're right, onee-sama.'

With a soft, feather-light touch, Sachiko tucked a stray lock of hair behind Yumi's ear as she told her that she trusted in her brother as a good man.

'Yes,' Yumi agreed. 'Yuuki would never hurt anyone. Especially not Touko-chan, I think.'

Sachiko dipped her head in a nod, satisfied. The Fukuzawas were good people, the best kind, who valued respect and friendship instead of pedigree and prestige. Sachiko could think of plenty of names in her family who would be good to take a lesson from such honest living, Touko-chan notwithstanding.

'By the way, Yumi,' she said, suddenly remembering something she'd picked up on early in the afternoon. 'I've noticed that you still refer to my cousin as Touko-chan even though she is your petite-soeur. Is there a particular reason?'

Yumi visibly stiffened so quickly that Sachiko had to suppress a giggle as she saw her eyes dart from side to side in panic. Clearly, Yumi thought this was a big deal to Sachiko.

'Calm down, Yumi. This is not a reproval. I'm simply curious.'

Yumi shot her a look as if to say 'Are you sure?'

Sachiko held up her hands in a gesture very reminiscent of a former classmate. 'Honest.'

It seemed to satisfy her petite-soeur, however, as she began to talk about her soeur relationship with Touko-chan.

It was interesting, Sachiko thought, as she listened to Yumi highlighting certain elements of their sisterhood. At first glance, Sachiko imagined that it would seem as if Touko-chan was just being obstinate in her refusal to call Yumi 'onee-sama', but the way Yumi saw it, it was a necessary path to take in order to find equality.

Now, that in itself, was an unusual wish for any onee-sama at Lilian. After all, the point of the soeur system was to mentor a chosen younger student, to guide her in her studies and duties, and to admonish or praise her accordingly as an experienced senior member of the student body. The quest for equality would essentially be rejecting the system.

And yet, the more Sachiko mulled over the idea in her mind, the more she came to realise that it wasn't so very far from what really occurred. Wasn't it her own onee-sama that had said to her 'the older sister watches over the younger sister, the younger sister supports the older sister'? Fundamentally, were they not the same thing? Were they not equally important roles, equally borne from the desire to care for someone dear?

_And is this not what I desire? _A voice inside reminded her. _This equality?_

Yumi had finished her explanation by the time Sachiko surfaced from her thoughts.

'I understand, Yumi,' she told her solemnly.

'You do?'

'Yes.'

Yumi's face softened with relief. Where she doubted that many people questioned Yumi's actions at Lilian, she could surmise that it was something that had been on her mind a lot recently. Sachiko could understand that she felt the pressure of maintaining school standards under the gaze of the students as Rosa Chinensis. After all, it wasn't too long ago that she herself was in that position.

'Try not to worry too much about the traditions of Lilian, Yumi. After all, a name is a precious gift from one's parents, and high school passes in only three short years,' she advised gently, placing a hand on her arm. 'Do what you feel is right for Touko-chan.'

Yumi acknowledged this with a smile as Sachiko continued.

'I know from both experience and observation that the practice of calling someone 'onee-sama' brings with it a certain closeness, as intended, but… I also believe that a part of you would be disappointed if you stopped hearing Touko-chan speak your name, am I wrong?'

Yumi's eyes widened at the statement.

_I am not wrong, then, _Sachiko confirmed internally. She'd thought as much.

'The truth is, I felt the same way. Even though I had you call me onee-sama, as was expected of me, I missed the sound of your voice speaking my name, even _with_ the honorific.'

Sachiko fought down a blush. She was being very honest with Yumi, and was about to move from 'honest' to 'bold' in one quick move. She knew that what she was going to say would be rejected immediately, but hoped that it would gradually sink into Yumi's mind and develop into a Possibility. This 'equality' that Yumi had spoken of was exactly what Sachiko wanted to obtain between them. Without it, there would be no hope of progressing further.

Around them, the world was darkening as rainclouds pushed their way across the sky.

'Now that I've graduated and we are no longer at school together, you should feel no obligation to call me 'onee-sama'. It is a Lilian tradition, after all.'

She didn't want to ask. She _couldn't_ ask. That would be _too_ bold, and unfortunately, Yumi was finding it difficult to digest already.

Drops of rain began to fall.

She sat before Sachiko, frozen in shock for a moment with her mouth open, unblinking eyes, and white as rice. For a split second, Sachiko wondered if her mouth would start opening and closing like a fish when Yumi quickly recovered, and threw her hands up to her chest. The very tips of her ears were scarlet.

'O- onee-sama.. I c- GYAAHHH!'

Thunder suddenly roared overhead. It sounded as if the sky had been ripped down the centre, or like a gunshot through an amplifier, and they both jumped to their feet at the shock. Sachiko wasn't frightened of thunderstorms but she knew that one of the worst places to be in the event of lightning was under a tree.

'Yumi?' Yumi turned to her, flinching again as another great clap burst from the sky and echoed around the park.

_She's frightened…_ Sachiko realised, her heart going out to her.

'Yumi, take those corners and help me move our things away from the tree,' she ordered, taking charge. Sachiko decided that it would be best not to hesitate if her imouto was scared of storms. This one, by the sounds of it, was going to get much worse.

Yumi nodded quickly and dived into action. Pushing any stray items she could see onto the blanket, she grasped each corner and they hauled their wares out from under the shelter of the braches, into the open.

The rain really started to pour then.

Sachiko hurriedly placed both corners into one of her hands and took the others from Yumi, tying them in a hasty knot. It wasn't a heavy parcel so she lifted it easily with her left hand, wrapping it round once to secure it, and reached out to Yumi with her right.

The drops were large and heavy as they beat down upon the two girls running hand in hand. In the distance, a small building ahead came into view.

'It's the little café at the centre, onee-sama!' Yumi shouted over the rain.

Sachiko turned her head to answer and she saw through the wet strands of her dark fringe that the rain was bouncing off their bodies. 'Run to it! We need to get out of this storm!'

She couldn't remember the last time she'd been caught rain like this.

Another great boom of thunder cracked the sky, this time followed by blinding flash of light and Sachiko felt Yumi jolt in her own as she squeaked in surprise.

With a reassuring squeeze she tightened her grip.

_Don't worry, Yumi… I've got you._

_

* * *

_

**Chapter Five - preview**_._

"_'Yumi? Are you alright? Are you injured?' The words flowed quickly from onee-sama. She sounded panicked._

_'It's okay, I'm fine, I'm fine.' Yumi rubbed her shoulder again and looked up at Sachiko-sama. She was crouched to the right of her, one arm wrapped around her back protectively, the other holding onto her right hand._

_'Can you stand?' she asked._

_'Yes, of course. I only hit my shoulder, I'm okay,' Yumi replied and rose to her feet._

_Guided by onee-sama's surprisingly strong grip, she sat back down in her chair, completely baffled._

What happened just then? Where did that dog come from?"

**Yep, the dog has arrived.**


	5. Chapter 5

The sopping blanket was resting dejectedly next to the doorway.

Yumi sat quietly at one of the café's tables with her palms wrapped around a cup of Ulong Tea. She could vaguely feel droplets of water as they fell onto her shoulders from her wet hair but her attention was across the room.

_Onee-sama... You've surprised me again..._

She looked to where Sachiko-sama stood next to the picnic bundle, staring out of the door's window at the weather. She also had some tea but, as far as Yumi was aware, hadn't yet drunk from it. Instead, she only held it up in her right hand, turned slightly inward, as her left arm wrapped elegantly across her front. A ribbon of steam rose from the cup, curling about her ear and around her lovely, refined face as she watched the rain.

Yumi sighed. Sachiko-sama still looked beautiful, even after she'd been drenched. The jeans she wore were considerably darker now they were wet, which suited her, and the pale cashmere sweater clung to her stunning figure, highlighting curves that were usually hidden in the Lilian uniform.

_How unfair, _she grumbled. _Onee-sama still looks like a princess when she's soaking wet, and I just look like a drowned doll._

Yumi glanced down at her own ensemble in a sulk. The khaki cut offs that she was doffing were sticking to her skinny legs and her yellow cotton top had turned quite a dirty colour in the rain. It was a little see-through now, too. And goodness knows what was happening with her hair...

She groaned and fell forward over the table, letting her head rest on her arms. _What a perfectly awful end to the day._

Despite the warmth in the café, Yumi shivered a little in her wet clothes.

'Yumi, are you alright?' Sachiko asked from her vigil by the doorway. 'Are you cold?'

Sitting up, Yumi shook her head and said that she was okay. She didn't want to make a big deal of it- it was temperate enough inside. Besides, it's not like either of them had a jacket she could wear.

Sachiko-sama made her way over and placed a hand on Yumi's shoulder.

'I'm afraid we'll have to wait here for the rain to stop,' said quietly to her, lost in her thoughts.

Yumi could tell that there was something troubling her onee-sama, but she was preoccupied herself. She hoped that she hadn't seemed too rude before the rain started to fall. It had come as somewhat of a shock, though.

'I'll be okay if I'm with onee-sama,' she replied earnestly, to try and make up for it.

Sachiko-sama gave her a strained smile in response and patted her softly before she returned to the door.

_I was so insensitive back there,_ Yumi thought despondently. Glancing at her profile, she could see that a gentle sadness had settled into Sachiko-sama's delicate features, and Yumi berated herself internally for being such a fool. _I hope I didn't insult her…_

Onee-sama had really thrown her, though, and she was still reeling from the confusion. Was it just a kind offer or an actual, genuine request? And why would onee-sama request such a thing even when she herself still called Youko-sama by that same title?

Yumi shook her head. Even after two years together, she still found it difficult to understand her at times. In most instances, she found it easy to anticipate onee-sama's moods and behaviour but every once in a while she would, as Sei-sama would put it, throw a curve ball.

And the most important thing was; could Yumi do it if it _was_ a request?

She was unsure.

For 90 per cent of their relationship, Yumi had called her 'onee-sama' as asked. How do you break such a habit? And, as much as she considered it mostly habit, Yumi also knew that it brought a comfort to her, knowing that Sachiko-sama would always watch over her and guide her as an older sister. It would mean more than just growing out of a school tradition- it would almost be like leaving home.

_But... But onee-sama would never abandon me, _she thought. _Regardless of what I called her..._

She let her eyes fall on the dignified figure by the entrance again, considering this. Sachiko turned with a half-smile for her and Yumi shivered again, this time with apprehension.

Anyone else would consider it a step backwards to go from calling her 'onee-sama' to calling her 'Sachiko-sama' again, but Yumi was certain that she felt the same way, otherwise she wouldn't have brought it up.

_After all, a name is a precious gift… isn't that right, onee-sama?_

Sachiko-sama had turned her body fully to face Yumi, her eyes glittering and her wet black hair shining under the soft light of the building.

_Isn't that right... Sachiko-sama..._

She could feel it on her tongue; her name, a precious gift, dancing on the tip, waiting to be spoken...

Yumi saw her onee-sama's brow knit in concern and wondered what her own face was doing. She was well aware that she had no control over what expression she made when she was thinking- it had been pointed out to her enough times. Even now, she knew it was betraying something.

Sachiko-sama took a step forward and-

'WAN WAN! WAN WAN WAN!'

_Ehh!_

Without warning, a sudden force blasted her chest. The tea cup flew out of her hand and crashed to the floor, splattering its contents over her already wet clothes as she hit the floor- THUD!

'Yumi!'

'Eyahh...' She squinted and rubbed her at her shoulder where it had enthusiastically greeted the ground. The room still spun about her a little, having gone so quickly from vertical to horizontal, and she tried to right her vision.

'What the- Ehh! Wha- gyaahh!' Yumi spluttered and batted at the hairy face that suddenly started bathing her cheeks with licks. _What on earth!_

'Oh no! Oh no! I'm so sorry, miss!'

With her eyes closed to the barrage, Yumi heard sets of hurried footsteps come running over to where she lay on the floor, pinned down with the dog's paws. There was a series of shuffles and a 'bad dog!' was uttered by a male voice before the pressure lifted from her torso and she was finally able to sit up.

Sachiko-sama had already rushed to her side to try and fend off the animal before the café proprietor had shot over to them.

'Yumi? Are you alright? Are you injured?' The words flowed quickly from onee-sama. She sounded panicked.

'It's okay, I'm fine, I'm fine.' Yumi rubbed her shoulder again and looked up at Sachiko-sama. She was crouched to the right of her, one arm wrapped around her back protectively, the other holding onto her right hand.

'Can you stand?' she asked.

'Yes, of course. I only hit my shoulder, I'm okay,' Yumi replied and rose to her feet.

Guided by onee-sama's surprisingly strong grip, she sat back down in her chair, completely baffled.

_What happened just then? Where did that dog come from?_

Yumi blinked, shaking her head, and couldn't help but laugh a little.

'Onee-sama... what happened?' she asked through a giggle.

But Sachiko-sama was not laughing. 'I have no idea, but I am going to find out.'

She'd taken a step back, and was looking over her shoulder to where the proprietor was shutting the dog behind a baby gate at the counter, her fists clenched at her sides.

Yumi swallowed as she noticed onee-sama's hands trembling with anger. _Oh no..._

She made to grab her arm before she took off for the counter, but missed, and could only hover over the chair, half-stood and half-seated, as onee-sama stormed to the other side of the room.

The little greying man turned from securing the gate to see Ogasawara Sachiko-sama towering before him.

'What is the meaning of this?' Yumi heard her demand in a low, haughty voice. 'Surely, as the owner and proprietor of an established business within the food sector, you do not need someone like myself to point out such a clear violation of health and hygiene regulations as having an animal on the premises? Aside from the legal restrictions, it is simple common sense to deny the entry of animals into any food serving establishment, regardless of its domesticity. This dog could have seriously injured my companion. Luckily, she escaped with a minor bump on the shoulder but consider that she could have hit her head and gained concussion. How utterly irresponsible!'

The café manager, a small, dumpy gentleman with runny eyes, shrank further and further into himself as Sachiko-sama tore into him with righteous indignation. And, god help her, as sorry as she felt for the man, Yumi was _this close_ to swooning at the sight of onee-sama in all her radiant glory.

She was, as always, completely amazing.

There were many things that Yumi loved about Sachiko-sama. When she first saw her playing Ave Maria on the organ at the Welcoming Ceremony, she was moved by her grace and talent, and watching further, Yumi began to admire many things; her intelligence, her manners, the way she walked and the sound of her voice as she greeted people kindly in the hall between classes. She was Lilian's princess, and the perfect picture of a lady.

Then, as they became closer, a side that could not be seen from afar revealed itself. Sachiko-sama had once described herself as selfish, arrogant and hysterical; something that she considered quite an accurate grasp of her self-image, and Yumi couldn't deny it. She certainly did display such traits when the occasion suited her.

And secretly, this was Yumi's favourite part of Sachiko-sama. Not the poised and selfless darling of Lilian Academy, not the educated, lady-like princess of the Ogasawara Group, but the flawed, human eighteen-year-old girl whose feelings burst out of her when she couldn't keep a hold of them.

Yumi had realised some time ago that Sachiko-sama, contrary to her calm and cultivated exterior, was a deeply passionate person. She just didn't know it yet.

'Please, miss, I am terribly, terribly sorry.'

He sounded close to tears.

With a low chuckle, Yumi shook her head and decided to step in. _Oh, onee-sama! You're frightening the poor man._ He probably thought Sachiko-sama was going to report him or something.

In all honesty, she did feel a little guilty. Onee-sama had blown it a little out of proportion for Yumi's sake.

_Hysterical, hmm? _She thought dryly, and with a lingering smile, set a placating hand on Sachiko-sama's arm.

'Onee-sama, please don't worry. I'm all right,' she told her, and beamed.

For a moment, Yumi thought that she was going to receive a reprimand too as Sachiko-sama turned her head and sharply appraised her, but her expression softened quickly at Yumi's smile and she sighed resignedly.

'Very well. As long as you are unhurt, Yumi,' she replied quietly. Yumi nodded. Truthfully, her shoulder still ached both where the dog had pounced on her and where she had hit the floor, but she kept it to herself. There was no good reason to throw wood on dying embers.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that the proprietor had visibly melted with relief. Of course, Sachiko-sama hadn't missed it either, and she shot another glare his way. It spoke volumes, that glare. Yumi had been on the receiving end more than once; 'Don't think you're out of the dark, yet.' It was one of the things that made Yumi believe Sachiko-sama would be a wonderful teacher- she could scold without uttering a single word.

Naturally, it worked on the gentleman owner. He snapped to attention and, as he waddled over to the cup that had flown from Yumi's hand, offered to pour a complimentary tea for them both.

Sachiko-sama nodded curtly with a small 'thank you', but Yumi, touched, grinned broadly at his generosity.

'Oh, yes, that would be lovely. Thank you very much.' She'd only taken a couple of sips from her cup before it had been ruthlessly swatted from her hands, and she missed the warmth on her palms.

'A pleasure, a pleasure,' he replied with a sincere smile, bowed and scurried back to the counter.

It was the first time she had seen him smile and Yumi could clearly tell that he was a person designed to do so. When frowning earlier, his face had remained quite taught, as if it wasn't used to being in such a position, but with a smile, it transformed into a mess of wrinkles and lines. _This is a kind person_, she thought. Someone whose life is filled with happiness.

Yumi decided she liked him.

'Onee-sama, would you like something to eat?'

'I'm sorry?' Surprised by the sudden question, Sachiko-sama turned her wary gaze from where it had settled on the dog to Yumi. She raised an eyebrow. 'You're not full from our lunch?'

Yumi grinned. 'We finished lunch some time ago and I'd like to try some of this gentleman's cake. I have a feeling it will be delicious,' she explained, gesturing to the large pound cake on the counter.

The owner looked up as he was pouring their tea. 'Thank you, miss, that's very kind of you.'

Yumi beamed at him and turned back beseechingly to Sachiko-sama, who stood with her brow still raised, considering the suggestion.

After a moment, she said, 'Okay,' and made to get her purse from inside the blanket that was still resting by the doorway, soaking into the floor.

'No, onee-sama. Let me pay for this,' Yumi said quickly. She rushed over to where Sachiko-sama was fiddling with the knot, ready for battle if she refused, but a voice called the attention of both girls before any such discussion arose.

'Please, misses, if you will.'

They stood and turned in unison to see three small plates sitting on the counter beside their steaming tea. Apparently, he had begun slicing the pound cake right after Yumi had mentioned it, and carved out three even pieces- one for each of them.

'Compliments of my wife,' he said, gesturing to the plates, 'and in apology of the earlier misfortune you suffered.'

_Yes, _Yumi thought, _a very kind person._

* * *

Setting her fork down, Yumi felt a satisfied grin on her lips.

She had been right about the cake- it _was_ delicious, possibly even nicer than Rei-sama's pound cake.

The old gentleman had finished his portion before both girls, as men often do, and had proceeded to tell them that, although a lot of the sweet produce in his café was supplied by another company, this particular cake they were eating was homemade by his wife every evening for him to bring in the following day.

She smiled at him as he spoke about his shop; how it had been passed onto him and his spouse through the generations of her family, her love of baking, etc., and she listened as politely as she could, but she was a little concerned.

Sachiko-sama had remained silent throughout the whole conversation.

It wasn't that unusual, of course. Her onee-sama had never been especially talkative, even in groups of close friends, but Yumi hadn't seen her so inattentive before. She'd barely even looked up from the table.

_Perhaps she is still angry…_ she supposed.

At a break in his speech, Yumi bowed her head and said 'My apologies, sir, but about the dog…'

He looked suitably abashed. 'Yes, miss?'

'Well, I'm unhurt, and there was no real damage but… I do agree with my onee-sama. I do think it unsuitable to have a pet in such a place.'

She tried to keep her words light. She didn't want to admonish him further, figuring that Sachiko-sama had been stern enough already, but she wanted to let her onee-sama know, in some way, that she supported her.

It sort of worked. Her peripheral vision picked up the slight change in Sachiko-sama posture.

With a bow of his head, the owner apologised again.

'I understand, miss, and I would usually not have such an animal on the premises. You see, truthfully, the dog does not belong to me.'

'Ehh?' Yumi was taken aback, and couldn't stop the surprised noise before it left her mouth. She had just assumed that it was his pet. 'I, uh, well, who does it belong to?'

He seemed unperturbed by her outburst. 'I don't know the owner's name, but I did see her as she tied it up outside shortly before the storm came. When the rain started to fall, I heard its whines and felt sorry for the poor creature, but not until the thunder and lightning started did I untie it and bring it inside. The pitiful thing was frightened stiff and I couldn't sit comfortably knowing how scared it was.'

Yumi looked over at the dog as he spoke. It was laid behind the bars of the gate with its sad eyes turned to where they sat together, and she felt an affinity with it.

When the storm had suddenly erupted around them, Yumi would have curled up into a ball in fright if it weren't for Sachiko-sama taking her by the hand and leading her, running, into the café.

She felt sorry for it, separated from its owner.

_How lonely you must feel…_

It whined sadly and lifted its chocolate brown head.

_Poor thing…_

As she and the owner sat looking at the dog, she suddenly asked him to let it out from behind the bars.

They both missed Sachiko-sama's head whip around to face her.

The gentleman frowned. 'Are you sure, miss? I wouldn't want it to become boisterous again and cause more accidents.'

'It's okay,' she said, with her eyes on the dog again. 'Look how sad he is… I don't think we're in any danger.'

He hesitated but finally gave a slight nod and stood up, turning to go and retrieve the dog.

Sitting back against her chair as she waited, Yumi suddenly became aware of Sachiko-sama's eyes on her, and turned to face her.

Sachiko-sama was staring at her incredulously, as if she were an alien from some far away planet.

_Uh-oh…_

Cringing under the scrutiny, Yumi had the distinct feeling that she could have possibly, just maybe, said something a little bit stupid.

'Umm…'

She considered asking what the matter was, playing the fool, but Sachiko-sama would see through that in an instant, and it would just irritate her. She also considered staying silent and just hoping that a smile would placate her, but she knew she had to say something.

She decided to be honest.

'I'm sorry. I just… I felt sorry for it.'

At the words, Sachiko-sama's expression softened, and she sighed, adjusting herself on her seat.

'Onee-sama…' Yumi probed, 'do you not like dogs?'

She was curious. They had never discussed this before- the only animal Yumi had come into contact with was Goronta, Lilian's adopted cat, which came and went as it pleased. She'd never had a pet herself, but she liked animals, and she wondered what Sachiko-sama thought of them.

'It's not that I dislike them, Yumi,' she said, speaking for the first time in a while. Yumi smiled at hearing her voice again.

'I just don't have much experience with animals,' she continued. 'Aside from horses, of course.'

Yumi nodded, remembering onee-sama telling her about the equestrian lessons she'd had when she was younger.

'I like them, especially dogs,' she said, when Sachiko-sama fell silent again.

'When I was little, I met a dog in the park once when my parents took me. It was so cute and all it wanted to do was play with me. It licked my hand and I just instantly liked it.' Yumi laughed at the memory. 'I begged my dad for a dog for aaaages afterwards. I bothered him so much with it.'

With a smile, Sachiko-sama said, 'Oh? And what did he say?'

'He said no, of course. Every time. I was mad at him for ages,' she answered, blushing at her childish behaviour. 'I didn't really understand why we couldn't have one at the time, but I do now.'

She looked over to where the owner was beginning to approach them with the dog, guiding it with the lead.

'Pets need care and stability, and we wouldn't have been able to provide that as a family while my parents were both working hard for his business and Yuuki and I were at school. It wouldn't have been fair. Animals need just as much love and attention as people do.'

Yumi beamed and went around to the far side of Sachiko-sama where the dog had settled itself. She knelt down and patted its head gently, gesturing with her other hand for onee-sama to follow.

She'd become slightly more wary as the animal approached, but Yumi was convinced that Sachiko-sama would like it. And, sure enough, when she slowly extended her hand out to stroke it, it licked her hand and she visibly melted.

The dog was wet, and it smelled a bit funny, but Yumi enthusiastically scratched it behind the ears, happy that Sachiko-sama was comfortable again.

'You continue to surprise me, Yumi.' It was whispered with a proud smile.

Yumi blushed, uncharacteristically pleased with who she had grown to be, for once, and fully aware that it was the girl before her mostly to thank for it in recent years.

Then, unexpectedly, a knock sounded at the door, surprising them all.

The café owner made his way over to the door, Yumi and Sachiko-sama rising with him.

'Ah, you've returned, miss,' Yumi heard him say, muffled slightly by the sound of the rain outside.

'Yes, sir. I wondered if you might have my dog in there or out the back?'

Yumi recognised the voice a split second before the visitor entered, simply because she'd taken her glasses off to clear them of rainwater.

'Kei-sama!' She exclaimed happily, please to see the face of someone who had been so kind to her again.

'Yumi-san?' Katou Kei hardly looked shocked at all, as was her nature. 'What are you doing here in such awful weather? And with my dog, no less?'

The older student smiled, vaguely amused.

Yumi beamed in response, 'Oh, we got caught in the storm during a picnic and had to shelter here.'

'Caught in the rain again, Yumi-san?' Kei-sama teased. 'Have you lost your umbrella again?'

'No, I just forgot it this time,' she blushed, and bowed. 'Thank you very much again, for your kindness.'

Kei-sama raised a casual hand.

'Don't worry, Yumi-san. It was no trouble,' she said.

It was then that Yumi noticed her friend was looking past her with a curious expression, and the comfortable smile on Yumi's lips dropped right into her stomach and she realised-

_Eyah! Onee-sama!_

She turned around to see Sachiko-sama stood primly behind her, completely ignoring Yumi and staring at Katou Kei with a resplendent, polite, and completely insincere smile.

_Oh no…_

* * *

**Chapter Six – preview**

'_You know, speaking of storms,' Katou Kei started again, and where she'd been mostly addressing Yumi throughout the conversation, her gaze flicked to Sachiko as she said this._

_Indignation flared inside her- the double meaning was clear- and she felt her whole body tense at the judgemental glance. She was outraged! For someone who knew only half of the story to make such an obviously disapproving gesture was just… just… _

_Sachiko took a deep breath and tried to control the hysteria that was bubbling under her rapidly thinning patience for this woman. _One… Two… Three…_ It was something that she'd adopted whilst at middle school- counting out her anger- and it had worked previously so she focused on the numbers in her mind, hoping fervently that it worked again…_

**Sachiko's jealousy was just so much fun to write. I hope you all enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.**

**Speaking of:**

**seyan- **I decided to do it from her POV for you, since you requested the jealousy. It will be a while before they get together properly, but I don't plan on stopping when it happens either- I already have plans for their future. I'm very glad you like it so far.

**MissIzzyB – **Thanks for commenting on the pace of the story. As I mention above, it will be a few more chapters before the actual confession, but I've got sketches of chapters beyond that done already. I wanted it to be slow and deliberate in order for it to feel possible that this could really happen, so thank you for noticing that.

**Honulicious- **On the phone, Sachiko sounded upset to Yumi when she talked about graduating and leaving everyone behind, so I had Yumi decide to try and be tactful about it. She ended up talking about them anyway, though :P And April is one of Japan's two typhoon seasons, so I thought I'd play with their weather system to add a little drama :D Thank you for your comments, by the way- I love reading them

**teufelchen29- **I'll try to keep updating quickly. I've decided to add the next chapter when I've finished the following one and am halfway through the next. I'm nearing the halfway mark of chapter 7 now, so six should be on its way very soon.

**Tomoe08- **Thanks for your review at the beginning of this. I hope it's kept you reading. And thanks for letting off the hook with the honorifics ;P

**Chinensis' Fan- **So I'm not the only who thought that Sachiko was just waiting for the right moment to strike? Excellent. And thank you for the compliment- I'll never try to describe this as a sequel, my heart beats only for Yumi and Sachiko, really, but I do appreciate your saying that

**Sammie-Chan89- **Yumi's innocence was something that I wanted to start with so that I could develop her character as a woman. It's also something that I wanted to use to give Sachiko a bit of humanity- she always seems so perfectly confident about everything, and I wanted her to be unsure. Your comment made me think about it a bit more, though, and in a later chapter, the uncertainty that Sachiko feels is going to cause her to blow up at Yumi…

**Oooh, a little teaser there :P**

**But seriously, thank you so much to everyone listed above and everyone else whose names I don't know for reading this. It started as more of a character exercise, but I've ended up falling in love with the story myself as I've kept going, so now I'm just writing it because I want to find out what happens to them both!**


	6. Chapter 6

Sachiko stood stiffly and kept quiet, even though every part of her was screaming to just butt in. Her mind was reeling with unanswered questions.

_Who is this woman, this Kei-sama? Is she Lilian alumni? How does she know Yumi? Why are they so familiar with one another?_

_And just what is this' kindness' she's referring to?_

She kept her smile, of course she kept it; as a child of the Ogasawara household, one does not forget one's social requirements, one's image; but behind the polite mask, Sachiko was furious that Yumi had completely forgotten her in the face of this tall stranger.

She considered taking a step forward, or clearing her throat, coughing- anything!- to remind Yumi of her presence, but she did nothing, unable to decide; her natural impatience was at war inside with her learned sensibilities of propriety. She just stood, fixing this '_Kei-sama'_ with an icy smile.

In the end, it was the other woman who brought her back into Yumi's mind- she stared past the younger girl, right at Sachiko, with wary curiosity.

And as she nodded in acknowledgement to their visitor, out of the corner of her eye, Sachiko saw Yumi cringe.

_Oh yes, I'm still here_, she thought, with a bitter smile.

'Kyahh! Um, I'm so sorry, onee-sama! Onee-sama, this is Katou Kei, a friend of Sei-sama's from university.'

_Katou Kei? _The similarity in name was not lost on Sachiko. _Satou Sei, Katou Kei… Wonderful. There's two of them._

It was a childish thought, and completely uncalled for, because she didn't even know this woman, but Sachiko couldn't keep it from entering her mind. She was jealous, pure and simple, and she knew it.

'Kei-sama, this is my onee-sama, Ogasawara Sachiko. She also attends Lilian University.'

Pointedly ignoring the flutter in her heart as Yumi said her name, Sachiko nodded curtly to Katou Kei, not missing the flash of recognition that crossed her face.

'Gokigenyou, Katou-sama. It's pleasure to meet a friend of Yumi's,' she greeted with a cool voice.

Sachiko wondered exactly what this Katou Kei knew about her as she received a similar curt hello in return.

'Kei-sama and I met last year when we had our, um, misunderstanding… in the spring.' Yumi only stuttered briefly, and for a moment, Sachiko was proud of her diplomacy when referring to the event that occurred between them last year, but it faded quickly as Yumi continued to gush about the stranger. 'Kei-sama welcomed me and Sei-sama into her home and took care of me when I was upset. She was very kind to me.'

There were a few mistakes that Sachiko regretted in her life, and one of the highest ranking ones was her inconsideration for Yumi in the June of her grandmother's death. Their miscommunication made them both suffer horribly; all because of Sachiko's cowardice.

A keening sadness wracked her body and she briefly stepped back from her jealousy, but it quickly resurfaced. She could feel it pushing at her in her mind. To think that someone else had taken Yumi under their wing, cared for her and helped through her distress… Sachiko knew that she should be grateful to that someone, thank them for their compassion, but the sense of rejection she felt was warping what should have been gratitude into an irrational envy.

Thankfully, Yumi remained oblivious to her tumultuous emotions.

'Kei-sama, you said that he's your dog?' she said excitedly. 'I didn't know you had a dog!'

Tearing her appraising eyes from Sachiko, Katou Kei scratched the back of her wet hair as she answered.

'Well, she's not really my dog, actually.'

'Really?' Yumi asked, confused.

Sachiko quickly glanced at the dog as Yumi spoke to Kei-sama. _Who on earth does this animal belong to then?_

'I found her a few weeks ago, stumbling around the side of the road near Yumiko-san's. This leg,' she said, pointing to the dog's left hind leg as it sat uncomfortably at her feet, 'was being dragged around behind her, as if she couldn't stand on it. I thought that she might have been hit by a car, perhaps.'

Sachiko saw Yumi clasp her hands at her chest dramatically, staring down at the dog with pity, and rolled her eyes discreetly. 'How awful!'

Katou Kei nodded. 'I couldn't leave her so I took her to a vet nearby. Apparently, the leg had been broken somehow. She put a cast on it, and when we returned to have it removed, she told me to make sure the dog had short, regular walks.'

'So, are you keeping it?' Yumi asked.

'Well, I don't really have the time to devote to a pet. What I was doing in the park, actually, was putting up posters to see if anyone would claim her. Some little girl or boy might be really missing this dog.'

_Well, aren't you the Good Samaritan… _Sachiko thought petulantly. She wasn't trying to be snarky, but this Katou Kei's seemingly endless benevolence was getting on her nerves a little, especially with the offhand way she'd appraised Sachiko earlier.

'So, I suppose there was a good reason to leave the dog tied up in the storm, then?'

Sachiko kept her voice light and blameless as she asked, but the question was pure bitch. She knew it, and Katou Kei knew it.

Turning to her with a wry smile, the older woman answered.

'Not especially good, no. I ran out of posters just before the storm came, so I left the dog tied up where I could find her again and headed back home. The leg hasn't healed properly yet and, as I mentioned, the vet recommended short walks, so I knew that if we ran, it could damage it.'

Sachiko huffed internally at the explanation, glancing down at the dog as she remembered it rambunctiously jumping up at Yumi. _It seemed perfectly fine on its legs earlier._

'So you got caught in the storm too, Kei-sama?' Yumi asked, filling the silence.

'Yes. I was well over halfway home when the rain started, so I turned back to get her. I've never had a dog myself but I'm aware that animals generally do not do well in thunderstorms.'

Sachiko spotted the slight pink that crept up Yumi's neck as she nodded, undoubtedly blushing at her own weakness in the face of a storm.

'You know, speaking of storms,' Katou Kei started again, and where she'd been mostly addressing Yumi throughout the conversation, her gaze flicked to Sachiko as she said this.

Indignation flared inside her- the double meaning was clear- and she felt her whole body tense at the judgemental glance. She was outraged! For someone who knew only half of the story to make such an obviously disapproving gesture was just… just…

Sachiko took a deep breath and tried to control the hysteria that was bubbling under her rapidly thinning patience for this woman. _One… Two… Three…_ It was something that she'd adopted whilst at middle school- counting out her anger- and it had worked previously so she focused on the numbers in her mind, hoping fervently that it worked again.

'Speaking of storms,' Katou Kei repeated, this time looking at Yumi, 'if you would both like to shower and dry off your clothes, I'm sure you would be welcomed by Yumiko-san at her home.'

_Excuse me?_ Sachiko stopped counting.

And before Yumi could reply, she immediately jumped in with an icy dismissal. _Not a chance._

'Thank you very much for your kind offer Katou-sama, but we were actually discussing calling for a car to collect us before your unexpected arrival.'

'Ehh!' Yumi cried. 'Where to?'

Sachiko calmly glossed over Yumi's uncouth outburst. 'To my house, of course,' she answered sweetly.

Dismissing Yumi's shocked expression and Katou Kei's raised brow, she turned swiftly to the café owner. He had refrained from entering their conversation up to now, hovering silently in the background.

'If it's not too much trouble for you, sir, would you kindly call a reputable firm to deliver my friend and I safely home?'

At his obliging nod, she thanked him and gave her address, unable to stop the satisfied smirk that spread across her lips as she turned back to face Katou Kei.

'I wish your dog a speedy recovery, Katou-sama, and hope that you are successful in your efforts to locate the owner. I can imagine that it must be quite an inconvenience to have an unexpected guest arrive so suddenly.'

With her lips pursed, Katou Kei nodded her head in comprehension, the lens of her glasses flashing under the dim lights of the café. Sachiko knew very well that she had made her point and that the other woman hadn't missed the insinuation.

Very little else was said as they all listened to the one-sided conversation from the back of the café; Yumi, shocked and confused; Sachiko and Katou Kei, facing each other off.

It was a very brief phone call, thankfully.

'The car will be with you very shortly, miss.' The proprietor interrupted, keeping his tone formal and unobtrusive as he relayed the message. Sachiko suspected that he was wary of the change in her demeanour, owing to the way she had spoken to him previously in regards to the dog debacle. She didn't feel an ounce of pity.

'Well, in that case, Kawa-chan and I will be on our way.' Katou Kei bowed to Sachiko in a slightly exaggerated manner. 'Gokigenyou, Ogasawara Sachiko-sama. A pleasure meeting you.'

Sachiko snorted ungracefully in her head, but she nodded and wished her farewell.

'Yumi-san,' Katou-sama said, turning to Yumi with a considerably warmer smile, 'see you later, eh?'

Sachiko watched Yumi bow and then wave stiffly in farewell, conscious of Sachiko's eyes. She asked Katou Kei to give her best to Yumiko-san, and then,_ finally_, their unexpected guest left, toting her umbrella as she lead the dog through the rain and away from the little café.

Sachiko heaved a silent sigh and retreated into a chair at a table close to the entrance, the swarm of emotions still battling on inside her; jealousy, guilt, selfishness, indignation… She raised a hand to her forehead, fighting off a self-induced headache, and wished for once that they could just have time uninterrupted.

After a short while, she caught sight of Yumi in her peripheral vision, hovering restlessly. It looked as if she was trying and failing to speak.

Sachiko lowered the hand at her head, but she was still irritable, and after a few seconds of silence, her impatience got the better of her.

'What is it, Yumi?' she snapped, but then winced at the tone of her own voice. Sachiko berated herself; she didn't want to take her frustration out on Yumi.

'Onee-sama… I-I'm sorry I didn't mention Kei-sama to you sooner, I just… I didn't think about it. Are you mad at me?'

When Sachiko sighed and shook her head, she continued.

'When I thought you had abandoned me, I broke down on Sei-sama, and she took me to her friend's house to get out of the rain and just calm down… I was going to tell you all about it. I remember thinking of telling you the story when we next met but… but when I finally saw you, onee-sama, everything flew out of my head. I was just so happy to be with you again, and see your face, that nothing else mattered.'

Being back with you, I didn't think about it again because it just wasn't important anymore… I'm sorry.'

Sachiko felt like a complete fool.

In her jealousy, she had treated someone who had been unfailingly kind to Yumi with utter disrespect. She had acted selfish and thankless and childish, and not only that, she had lashed out at Yumi in her arrogance, who had just stood before her and said plainly and honestly that Sachiko made everything else inconsequential.

Suddenly, Sachiko's reaction to the familiarity that Yumi and Kei-sama shared seemed really, _really_ stupid.

She laughed aloud at herself and raised her head to smile at Yumi, who looked back at her with the cutest expression of confusion.

'Onee-sama?'

Shaking her head dismissively, Sachiko chuckled again as she looked out of the window. The car to take them home had arrived.

'Come, Yumi,' she said, standing up and extending her hand. 'Let's go home.'

Yumi smiled happily and took Sachiko's hand in her own, making the skin of her palm shiver again. 'Okay.'

* * *

_That was possibly the most wonderful shower I've had in my entire life,_ Yumi thought contentedly as she knelt on the floor, humming a nameless tune and drying her hair.

When Sayako-obasama had answered the door, she'd immediately rushed them both upstairs and into the shower in a very motherly fashion, mumbling about wet clothes and catching chills. Yumi had been surprised at how quickly she'd realised they were there- she'd seemed to materialise instantly before them as they entered the house.

'Father must be out again tonight,' Sachiko-sama had said, half to herself, as she rummaged for towels in the guest room's linen closet upstairs. Yumi had almost missed it in her awe (_wow… even the guest room has its own linen closet..._) but she'd caught the subtle hints of disappointment and bitterness in her onee-sama's voice.

She hadn't replied. It was something Sachiko-sama'd spoken of before, briefly, and something that she'd heard about from other sources- Tooru-ojisama's absenteeism- and she felt that to draw attention to it now would be inappropriate. Instead, she pleaded ignorance, and remarked at how fast Sayako-obasama had been to attend to them when they got back. Sachiko-sama had smiled and told her that she would have seen them coming on the security system, a small screen linked to which resided in the sitting room.

Her onee-sama had given her the towels with appreciative eyes, brushing their hands together- she was thankful for Yumi's tact- and Yumi had blushed, but even though the storm had dispersed, she felt the rainclouds weighing on her heart for Sayako-obasama's loneliness and the possibility that this solitude was a future that Sachiko-sama feared for herself.

She'd left Yumi then and headed down the hall to her own room and, presumably, her own bathroom- Yumi wasn't afraid to assume that Sachiko-sama had her own en suite. For the first few minutes of her wonderful shower, she was actually lost in her own imaginings of it all; large and spacious, in her mind the bedroom had tall, majestic windows with long, taffeta drapes and beautiful, solid old furniture- the bed was a central feature, and possibly had a coronet drape above the headboard, falling gracefully down each side of the pillows; the bathroom was completely tiled in an ivory colour, with a line of black marble running through the centre, and had a bath that wasn't huge, but just the right size to be modest and spacious at the same time; the same with the shower- it was sizable, but not overly so- just large enough for Sachiko-sama to fit in and move around comfortably as she washed her bo-

Suddenly aware of where that train of thought was heading, Yumi cried out and screeched her brain to a halt.

After that, she'd focused solely on her own shower.

There were clothes waiting for her on the bed when she got out, the blue denim and white cotton folded neatly on the quilt. She'd squeaked quietly in mortification upon seeing them. Those were Sachiko-sama's clothes. Which meant that Sachiko-sama could possibly have been in the room to hear her cry out in the bathroom.

_How embarrassing…_ _She probably though I slipped or something. She knows how clumsy I am…_

But she'd just sighed and got on with blow-drying her hair. _Oh well…_

Now, Yumi quickly checked the time as she closed off the low hum from the hairdryer.

The clock on the dresser read just after six.

Sayako-obasama had said that dinner would be ready around half past, so she had little under half an hour to get dressed and get downstairs. Figuring it would be rude to dash down just before it was served, Yumi picked the jeans out from underneath the shirt and pulled them on immediately.

It was strange- they were a very familiar cut and fit, flowing down around her ankles and stopping to rest just after the tip of her tiniest toe. The shirt was thrown on next; up her arms, over her shoulders and closed up, leaving only the top button undone.

Comparatively, Yumi could tell that the cotton shirt was of much higher quality than the jeans, just by feeling it as it brushed against her skin. She touched the material on her arm, studying how soft it was, and wondered slightly at the difference between the two. It seemed odd to her that Sachiko-sama would own such a pair of jeans considering how expensive a lot of her outfits were…

Yumi turned to face the mirror in the corner of the room. _Sachiko-sama's clothes…_

_I'm wearing Sachiko-sama's clothes…_

She felt peculiar, as if this was something that should never have happened, and Yumi wondered if anyone else had ever worn Sachiko-sama's clothing or if she was the only one. The possibility that she was made her head swim.

The strangest thing about the whole situation, though, was that as Yumi stood inspecting herself in the mirror, she realised with a considerable start that they _suited her_.

The shirt was form-fitting, but not tight, and went in at her waist exactly the way it should. The sleeves were a little too long, but not so much so that turning the cuffs up once wouldn't do the trick.

It was then that she finally understood.

'Eyah!'

_That's what Yuuki meant!_

She'd thought that he was just being her grumpy little brother and called her fat, but that wasn't it at all.

Yumi had grown.

Sachiko-sama, she remembered, had always been taller than her- almost a whole head so- and where if she'd tried on her trousers before they would have sailed past her feet by around three or four inches, now they stopped at her toes. And the shirt- it would have dwarfed her. The waistline would've rested on her hips and the sleeves right past her fingertips. Yumi made a mental note to measure herself when she got home.

Then she noticed that, not only had she grown in height, but she'd grown into her features more too; her nose seemed less babyish, sharper, and her cheeks were less chubby, making her rounded face more heart-shaped than before. The only thing that looked unchanged was her eyes, as big and guileless as they had always been.

_Huh._

_What a difference a year makes…_

Spotting the clock in the reflection, she turned back to face it, abandoning her self-assessment.

6:17

She left her hair ribbons on the bed and headed out the door.

* * *

Sayako-obasama was just exiting the dining room as Yumi reached the bottom step.

'Oh, Yumi-chan! Don't you look cute in Sachiko-san's clothes!' She clapped her hands together in delight, walking forward to close the distance between them as she spoke.

Yumi blushed a little, feeling a shyness creep over her. 'I know… They don't really fit me…'

She'd turned up the ends of the jeans so she didn't tread on them and thin the denim but hadn't yet altered the sleeves of the handsome shirt, letting them skirt her knuckles.

Sayako-obasama waved her off.

'That's not what I meant, Yumi-chan. They are a _little_ long but they suit you. You look very mature,' she explained. 'Hmm, I wonder why Sachiko-san doesn't wear that shirt much anymore…'

And suddenly, she leaned into Yumi, lowering her voice almost conspiratorially. 'Perhaps we should give it to Yumi-chan, eh?'

There was no way Yumi could curb the expression of shock that undoubtedly hit her face, and nervously, she voiced her concern.

'Um, well, um… w-with all due respect, Sayako-obasama, I don't think you should be giving away onee-sama's clothing without permission, even as her mother…' She'd gotten to know Sachiko-sama's mother pretty well over the last couple of years, so she was fairly sure that she hadn't overstepped any bounds by saying this, but still… she hoped that it didn't sound too impertinent.

Wonderfully, Sayako-obasama raised her hand to her mouth and giggled like a school girl.

It was like looking at Sachiko-sama through the fog of a time machine. At that moment, their laugh and mannerisms overlapped to such an astonishing degree that Yumi couldn't help but see how beautiful Sayako-obasama was.

_Sachiko-sama must look so much like her mother did at her age…_

And then, as if summoned by Yumi's very thought of her, Sachiko-sama appeared in the doorway to the dining room; her hair towel-dried and wearing the simplest of clothes, making the everyday look absolutely magnificent, as she always did.

'Ah, Sachiko-san! We were just talking about you,' Sayako-obasama greeted her daughter with a sly smile.

Sachiko-sama's eyes flitted quizzically between the two of them for a moment and then finally came to settle on Yumi with an indulgent smile.

'My, Yumi, don't you look lovely in those clothes,' she said sincerely, with glittering eyes.

Yumi blushed furiously, much more so than when Sayako-obasama had complimented her, and she would have thanked her, but Sachiko-sama's mother gaily jumped in.

'Don't you think she looks older, Sachiko-san?' She sounded so jolly as she said it that Yumi couldn't help but consider it complimentary.

Sachiko-sama ran her eyes across Yumi's face, turning the question over in her mind.

'I suppose so…'

Yumi deflated a little.

'… but I only see Yumi,' Sachiko-sama finished with a private smile, just for her.

It was like the world had collapse around Yumi, fallen in on itself, and left only Sachiko-sama standing there in front of her, gazing at her with undiluted pride and affection.

Angels don't fly this high.

'I was saying that you don't wear that shirt anymore, Sachiko-san,' came Sayako-obasama's voice, bursting through their bubble.

They both turned to see that she had started to retire to the dining room again.

'Why not give it to Yumi-chan, hmm?' And with that, she closed the door, leaving the suggestion hanging in the air.

Yumi hunched her shoulders a little, embarrassed. 'Onee-sama, I-, um, I mean, y-you don't have to do an-'

Sachiko-sama stepped forward and, with one hand resting on her shoulder, pushed her fingers gently through Yumi's golden-brown fringe, combing it slightly to one side.

Yumi's forehead burned where their skin touched and the words she was going to say became lost.

She didn't flinch or jump away, but she really had to fight the natural urge to do so.

This touch… something that had been so casual before, so comforting, suddenly felt so different to her memories. It made her breath taste hotter, her limbs feel weak… It was like thousands of tiny feet were running all over her skin.

_W-what…?_

It was unsettling, and Yumi was confused, but Sachiko-sama carried on, heedless of the effect she was causing, and then finally stepped back.

'There,' she said, satisfied. 'Lovely.'

Yumi turned to the hanging mirror in the hall, her rattled nerves back-seated now to curiosity, and took in the almost unfamiliar face staring back at her.

With just a few basic alterations to her hair, she really _did_ look older- almost lady-like- and with a shy smile, she thanked Sachiko-sama, who nodded approvingly.

'Umm… About the shirt…'

'Okaa-san is right,' Sachiko-sama said. 'I want you to have it.'

If she was honest, Yumi hadn't really expected onee-sama to reject the idea. Despite referring to herself as selfish, she had always been so generous to Yumi, in word and in deed, and Yumi swelled with gratitude.

'You must wear it, though. That is the condition,' Sachiko-sama stipulated light-heartedly. 'I will expect to see it.'

'Oh, I will,' Yumi gushed, and then remembered. 'And, look!'

She stepped right up to Sachiko-sama, bringing their faces barely an inch apart, and raised her hand level with the top of her head, the cotton cuff grazing her forehead softly.

'I've gotten taller!'

Rightly enough, she was now eye-level with Sachiko-sama's nose, and Yumi beamed with pride. 'See?'

'Y-yes. So I see.' Sachiko-sama cleared her throat as she stepped back. 'Well, I suppose you're hungry by now. Dinner should be served. Please come in when you're ready.'

And without another word she turned and headed for the door.

'Okay,' Yumi said brightly, and diligently turned her attention to the thick cotton sleeve ends, flipping them over on themselves as Sachiko-sama disappeared; the last thing she wanted to do was get food all over them.

She was so diligent, in fact, that she missed the bright scarlet hue that had painted itself along the very tips of Sachiko-sama's ears as she left for dinner.

* * *

It was a few days after the storm had passed when Satou Sei ran into Kei-san again, on another rainy day, travelling between lectures.

'Aha! It's the Dog Lady!' Sei hollered down the hall, regardless of the curious glances she received at the strange nickname.

She merely received raised an eyebrow in response. 'Dog Lady?'

Sei shrugged and 'Dog Lady' rolled her eyes. 'You must be tired. Surely you can do better than 'Dog Lady'... Been up all night writing letters?' she asked slyly.

Sei tapped her nose elusively and winked. 'Hehehe...'

'Hmm, well anyway, speaking of estranged friends,' Kei-san said, as they began to walk towards the lecture they shared that afternoon, 'I saw your little Yumi-chan the other day.'

'Ah, Yumi-chan!' Sei gripped her shirt over her heart dramatically as she cried out the name with faux-yearning, and then chuckled. 'How is she?'

She was genuinely interested, actually. It had been quite a while since she'd last seen her favoured little victim except for at a distance, and she'd been wondering about her well-being since Sachiko had been so withholding.

'Somehow, she'd managed to get caught up in a torrent again. You remember that storm on Sunday, right?'

Sei nodded. As a rule, she generally didn't pay much attention to the weather, but it had been a big one- loud and theatrical- and she had a weakness for a good storm.

'I ran into her in the park near my house. And I also had the pleasure of meeting the celebrated Ogasawara Sachiko.'

Sei grinned mischievously at the dryness in her friend's voice. 'Oh yes, The Lady Sachiko, eh?'

'The one and only,' Kei-san confirmed. 'Apparently, they were taking shelter from the storm in the little café. Actually, I offered them some space to shower and dry off at my home. They looked soaked through.'

When she didn't elaborate further, Sei had to ask, even though she already knew what the outcome would have been. 'And?'

'A magnificent brush off.'

'Hahaha!' Sei laughed- she'd totally pegged her underclassman. 'Yeah, that's Sachiko, alright.'

Honestly, despite her intense faddiness and volatile temperament, Sei had a soft spot for Sachiko. She used to find that she couldn't decipher her, which was something that had naturally intrigued the former Rosa Gigantea, but she did know that Sachiko was certainly not the type of person to accept an invitation to a stranger's home, _especially_ if she was jealous.

Sei shook her head. _How on earth was it that I found her so difficult to read?_

With a slight shrug, Kei-san interrupted her thoughts.

'Well, I didn't find it hard to leave Yumi-chan this time. She seemed to be in good hands. While I was there, a car was called to collect them, so I had no need to be concerned further.'

As they approached the door to their next lecture, Kei-san pulled the correct reference folder from her bag, but as she was opening it, she stopped and fixed Sei with a canny smile.

'That Ogasawara's a piece of work, though, isn't she?'

Sei threw back her head and laughed riotously. Never in her life had she heard someone refer to Sachiko as 'that Ogasawara', and it was absolutely brilliant.

'She certainly is,' she said to Kei-san, as they made their way to sit down.

_Watch out, Yumi-chan!_

* * *

**Chapter Seven – preview**

_As they all continued with the discussion, Yumi's attention drifted away from the conversation again and down into her tea, tapping at the cup restlessly with her fingernail. It had gotten cold long ago, but she didn't have the heart to interrupt Touko for another- she was so in her element right now that she was practically glowing, and Yumi's mind was fitfully turning over her mission this afternoon._

_It was Wednesday, the day that Sachiko-sama spent time after school hours teaching her elementary class a few gates down, and Yumi was going to invite her to dinner at home…_

**Hahaha! I had to get in a bit of Kei and Sei chatting at the end, just so I could call Sachiko 'that Ogasawara' :P Anyway, I hope I did Sachiko justice, writing her protectiveness (*coughs* jealousy *coughs*) of Yumi well enough.**

**It's going to be a longer wait for chapter seven, though. Unfortunately, my computer recently got hit by a virus so I'm trying get all the files back, including my story files- I've only got half of seven left and I don't know **_**where **_**eight's gone… :s**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** _Right. Well, this chapter ended up being significantly longer than the others I've written, so I decided to split it up into two. The first half is mostly filler, and I didn't enjoy writing it quite as much I did the latter part, so apologies if it seems a little… lifeless. I've rewarded you all for your patience with it already, though, by posting the second half at the same time, so go easy on me. Please, take the bribe._

_Also, I do know that Sachiko's candour in the second half is out of character for her, but I really wanted her to make a point to Yumi; that she's only human, and short of writing Sachiko involvement in some horrific life-threatening accident or something, there was no other way I could think of having it driven home to Yumi. I mean, let's face it- Yumi really does need to have some things spelled out to her._

_Thank you all so much for your continuing encouragement! __**Avaraen**_**, V**_**Julesv **__and __**Rosana, **__thank you for taking the time to comment- I read a lot of fanfic myself and rarely take the time to review so I honestly do appreciate it. And __**Rosana**__- every night? :D I'm flattered._

_Anyway, I've let this run away with me. On with the story._

* * *

'I'm sorry, what was that, Yoshino-san?'

The Rose Mansion was currently housing all six Yamayurikai members and the topic of discussion, as it had been for the past week, was the school festival.

The early summer sunshine streamed through the white curtains. It was a particularly hot day today, for June, so the windows had been thrown open, letting some air in.

'I _said_, Yumi-chan,' came the irascible reply, the breeze fluttering her fringe, 'that I don't know why we're all getting so worked up about this. It's all the way in September and we're only in June! We have all of summer to come up with ideas.'

Yumi sighed again. She'd been doing it a lot recently. During the first term, the work of the student council, where it was never exactly something to be sniffed at, was at least steady and, at times, boring. They generally spent most of the time dealing with everyday matters: suggestions for improvements to the gym or cafeteria; changes in the cleaning rota; processing requests for approval of clubs or committees, and the like. After summer though, the _real_ test of their organisational and planning skills began, as they were all put through their paces arranging the high point of every student's high school career - the greatly anticipated Lilian School Festival.

Unsurprisingly, it was Noriko-chan who criticized Yoshino-san's blasé attitude, and argued against it.

'But even though we'll be coming into school a week before term starts to discuss it, it will still only leave us about a month to prepare everything,' she reasoned. 'Add to that the fact that Hanadera will undoubtedly request our collaboration with _their _school festival again, considering how much of a hit it was last year, that will leave us only a month to plan, develop and participate in _two_ school festivals!'

Yoshino-san huffed and threw her arms across her chest- Yumi had to concede that Noriko-chan had a point there.

Yuuki had been elected Student Council President at Hanadera for his third year and, although Yumi knew that it wasn't the only reason, she had a good feeling that his persuading the Lilian Yamayurikai to join in their festivities last year had been a major vote-winner for him. It meant he had more 'clout' this time… but last year's festival would be something difficult to live up to, even if he _was_ the one who planned it, so she was certain that a similar request would come their way in the near future purely for the reason that if this year's didn't contain the girls of Lilian, it would really pale in comparison. She considered that this view could be seen as slightly egotistical on her part, but it was a simple truth that teenage boys, especially those in attending an all-boys school, are easily impressed by girls.

'Well, obviously, we have to consider the play. It's always been an important part.' Touko, of course.

'Do you have anything in mind, Touko-chan?' asked Shimako-san, with her trademark serenity.

'Well, we could always do Shakespeare, but it might be a little heavy for the occasion. Even the comedies are hard going sometimes, if you're not used to the language.'

'We could perform a version of Bamboo Hats and Rice Cakes?' Noriko-chan suggested.

Yoshino, still stinging from her lecture, rolled her eyes and snorted at the suggestion. 'That story only has two characters if you don't count the statues, and let's face it, who would want to be a _statue_? Talk about boring.'

'Well, let's hear your great ideas then!' Noriko-chan shot back with a glare.

'Noriko.' Shimako-san stopped the argument before it got out of hand. 'Although I do enjoy the story, I don't think it would be appropriate to perform a Buddhist play here at Lilian.'

Her petite-soeur opened her mouth as if to protest, but fell silent, giving in Shimako-san was right, after all- performing a Buddhist legend at a Catholic school wouldn't really create the right impression, and they all really wanted to prove themselves.

'What about the other old proverbs then?' Nana-chan chimed in.

As they all continued with the discussion, Yumi's attention drifted away from the conversation again and down into her tea, tapping at the cup restlessly with her fingernail. It had gotten cold long ago, but she didn't have the heart to interrupt Touko for another- she was so in her element right now that she was practically glowing, and Yumi's mind was fitfully turning over her mission this afternoon.

It was Wednesday, the day that Sachiko-sama spent time after school hours teaching her elementary class a few gates down, and Yumi was going to invite her to dinner at home.

It had been her mother's idea.

She'd returned late on Friday last week after spending longer than usual in the Rose Mansion going over the very same topic as they were now. It had been a particularly difficult week, and the foundations of the school festival were proving difficult to lie. She'd come home feeling quiet and dejected, having realised that, although she had been plodding along fairly successfully in her term as Rosa Chinensis up to now, the real test of her leadership skills had only just begun. Unlike the others, Yumi had remained almost silent at the meetings as they all threw their ideas out there, and she was feeling superfluous, inadequate. Her mom had been concerned and suggested that they invite Sachiko-sama over for dinner one evening the following week, considering how much Yumi had brightened up after spending some time with her the previous month.

Yumi had blanched at the idea, initially, rejecting it, but Miki Fukuzawa had managed to not only coerce Yumi into agreeing, but got her to choose the day and it was settled between them that the invite would be for Friday evening, a day that Yumi knew Sachiko would be able to spare the time. Although they hadn't seen each other in person since their picnic, through a light smattering of phone calls over the following month, Yumi had managed to memorize Sachiko-sama's usual schedule without even realising it.

It was, however, something that she found she was unable to do via telephone. Calling Sachiko-sama had become much less nerve-wracking now, yes, but she felt that it was something she ought to ask face to face.

_Sachiko-sama…_ Yumi had been thinking of her more and more over the weeks. She'd found herself always looking for a reason to call, just to hear her voice, to feel the shiver of happiness that ran through her even as it brought a subtle comfort. She'd also taken to lingering just that little bit longer outside the school gates before and after school, hoping to see Sachiko-sama getting off the bus or travelling around the University campus, as if just seeing her from a distance would satisfy a… a kind of need that she'd developed recently. Ever since… ever since…

She sighed again, raising a hand to her forehead subconsciously as she felt it tickle with a memory, but Yumi shook off the feeling. She'd gone over it so much in her mind already without making heads or tails of it that it seemed pointless to keep trying to puzzle it out. She'd tried reasoning that her heart had always beat a little harder when Sachiko-sama touched her, or smiled at her, and that it wasn't anything out of the ordinary; or that she was overwhelmed at having received such a personal gift from her onee-sama. She'd even, once, tried to put it down to feeling so warm from the shower, but Yumi had eventually given up. It was none of those things. It was just… different… Something she hadn't felt before.

Glancing at the clock for what could have been the fourth or fortieth time that afternoon, she had no idea, she pushed the second had closer to the hour with her eyes.

_Just a few more minutes…_

* * *

It was Shimako-san who formally ended the meeting, conscious that everybody's patience was wearing thin.

They all slowly rose to their feet, pushing the chairs back under the table and feeling the muscles stretch in their backs. Everyone seemed to be feeling the strain of the festival.

'Yumi-sama?' Yumi looked up from closing her satchel to see Touko-chan stood before her, her trademark corkscrew hair moving gently in the breeze. She was gazing at Yumi with serious eyes.

It took her a moment to realise, but scanning the room, Yumi noticed with a start that they were the only ones left. '…Oh!' She hadn't even heard them say goodbye, presumably lost in her thoughts.

'Is everything okay? You've been strangely quiet.'

Yumi hesitated. She thought for second of just telling her everything, saying each and every thought about Sachiko-sama that had crossed her mind, and pleading for an answer. She knew it was distracting her, both from her Yamayurikai work and in general (even Yuuki had noticed how much quieter she'd been recently), but she didn't want to burden Touko with these unanswerable questions. Instead, she relaxed her body and took solace in her petite-soeur's kind face, feeling the welcome calm that washed over her. On two of their six school afternoons, Touko-chan had responsibilities to attend to at the Drama Club, so it would often stop her coming to their Yamayurikai meetings. It was on those two days, Yumi had realised, that she was at her most absent-minded, most distracted and most rattled. Simply having Touko there, sitting next to her and smiling her way every now and then, made a world of difference.

She knew in her heart that voicing her worries to Touko-chan wouldn't make it any clearer, wouldn't cause any kind of revelation to stir inside her, but having the option to be able to made it all the more bearable. That in itself was enough.

'Touko-chan! What do you mean 'strangely'?'

The tension dissipated and, feigning an exasperated sigh, Touko shook her head, accepting the brush off good-naturedly, but Yumi reached out for her hand a second later, suddenly not wanting to leave it like that, grasping tightly at the other girl. She wanted Touko to know.

'Touko-chan… I know I've been… distracted, recently.' _It's hard to admit one's shortcomings_. 'There _are_ some things on my mind, but I don't want you to worry about it.'

Yumi remembered how crushed she had felt at the end of her first year, wanting and always failing to think of something to make Sachiko-sama feel better as she herself agonised over the very same thing, until they were both told firmly to just _stop it_. It had all been resolved long ago, of course, and surprisingly quickly, but she still faintly recalled running then from the room she stood in now, her cheeks wet with tears, and she didn't want it to get to that point with Touko.

'All I need from Touko-chan is her smile, and I'll know that I'm not on my own.'

It still felt, even after all this time, a delicate matter, complimenting her petite-soeur in such a way, but a faint blush had spread across Touko's cheeks as she looked away and Yumi knew that she'd said the right thing, the right way.

They left the Rose Mansion then in a comfortable silence, locking it behind them, and linked their arms as they traversed the ginkgo pathway to the school gates, with Yumi looking down every now and again to avoid squashing any. There had been a few victims already, and each time she lowered her head to scan the pathway, the familiar, pungent smell wafted up her nostrils. She laughed a little inside, memories of a decorated prince carried on the scent, and her onee-sama laughing as she'd told her without a shred of guilt, and more than just a little bit of sneaky amusement, that she'd stepped on his feet three times.

When they reached the sidewalk outside of the gates, Touko removed her arm and said: 'It's today that you're going to see Sachiko-oneesama, isn't it?'

Yumi nodded. 'Did you want to come along, Touko-chan?' she asked, mindful of how little they had seen each other recently. She almost felt guilty for seeing more of Touko's cousin that she did.

'No, I wouldn't want to intrude. It's not my face she'll be wishing to see.' Touko flashed her a discerning smile. 'Besides, I should be getting home. Please say hello for me, though, Yumi-sama.'

They gave each other a fond goodbye as they parted ways, Touko-chan left to the bus stop, Yumi right to Lilian Elementary.

* * *

_I hope Sachiko-sama will be leaving quite soon… I wish I had brought my umbrella…_ She could feel the sun on the parting in her hair.

It was a very short way that Yumi had to walk from the high school, but with the combination of the heat and her fluttering nerves it felt like it took much longer. She could feel the hotness of the sidewalk rising through the thin soles of her school shoes, warming her feet, and at the end of the street, rising heat waves were distorting the benches in the distance, but at last, the elementary gates came into view. Yumi ducked under the branches of one of the trees whose branches hung over the fence and peeked through the gaps at her old school.

_Ahh! It looks so cute!_

She felt a broad grin play its way across her face as she looked at it. Yumi hadn't passed this way for years, coming always from the bus stop to both middle and high school, so she'd never noticed before how little it was. When she'd attended as a child, it had all seemed so large and imposing._ Amazing what a little perspective can do_, she thought to herself, sagely.

There were some children leaving through the main doors, running excitedly up to their parents, waving various papers, jackets and bags around and beaming up at them.

_Hehe… They're as little and cute as the building_, she observed with a gentle warmth in her chest, and as a familiar figure followed the little ones through the exit, it flourished, and spread throughout the rest of her body.

Sachiko-sama looked radiant as she stood in the doorway, waving to her tiny pupils and wishing them a safe journey. Seeing her standing there with such a beautiful, joyous smile lighting up her features, Yumi thought that she was born to the role, and flushed with pride at how much the children obviously liked her. She felt so lucky to be connected with such a wonderful person.

It wasn't long before Sachiko-sama came through the gates, and she noticed Yumi immediately.

'Yumi! What a lovely surprise. Gokigenyou.' The shining smile hadn't yet faded from her lips.

'Gokigenyou,' Yumi replied brightly, infected with the other girl's obvious happiness. 'Are you taking the bus today?'

When Sachiko-sama nodded in confirmation, Yumi asked politely if she could join her.

'Of course,' she said happily, and they began walking back the way Yumi came. 'How are things, Yumi? It has been some time since we last saw each other.'

They talked briefly about their respective weeks as they made their way to the stop and then onto the bus. It was wonderful to see Sachiko-sama again, to hear her voice undiluted by the telephone and have her warm smile lift Yumi's heart. No matter how often she saw her, she never failed to make a beautiful day even better.

The bus was fairly empty of Lilian Students at this time of day, apart from those who stayed behind for club activities, and rarely stopped to pick up many more passengers, so it sailed along cheerfully, carrying them closer to the station. It felt almost as if they had stepped back in time and were travelling home together after a student council meeting, back when Sachiko-sama was still Rosa Chinensis and Yumi, her petite soeur.

Yumi sighed happily, content to sit inside the pretence.

Alas, her companion had other ideas.

'So what brought you to see me today?' she asked, with a side-long glance.

Yumi hesitated. It wasn't that she had _forgotten_ what the purpose of visiting Sachiko-sama was, she'd just… put it off. For days.

Stalling for time, she played the ignorance card. 'W-what do you mean?'

It was a stupid idea of course, as the other girl would see through it immediately, but she really needed the few extra seconds to get her courage up to par, regardless of the withering look she knew she would receive for it.

'Come, Yumi.' Sachiko-sama fixed her with a sharp look, as expected. 'Although I'm very pleased to see you, of course, I'm sure there's an ulterior motive to your showing up unannounced outside my classroom.'

Caught, naturally.

Yumi rallied her nerves. Truthfully, she really, _really _wanted Sachiko-sama to come to dinner. In the two years that they'd been acquainted, Yumi had visited two of the Ogasawara's houses, both on more than one occasion, and Sachiko-sama hadn't set one foot in hers.

'My mother would like to extend an invitation to dinner at my house on Friday evening,' she said in one breath, trying to keep cool. For a second, Sachiko-sama looked a little surprised at the invite, but then she smiled kindly, and bolstered by it, Yumi decided to do it _properly_.

'…_I_ would like very much for you to join us for dinner, onee-sama.'

The brilliant smile returned.

'I would be delighted to, Yumi,' she answered, breathlessly. 'Thank you very much for the invitation.'

The scenery blurred on the other side of the window, grey in its overall appearance, as the bus cruised gaily past it all, but Yumi wasn't looking at it. As she'd turned her head from Sachiko-sama, she had squeezed her eyes shut tightly, and tried to commit to memory the wonderful, unadulterated pleasure she'd replied with, replaying each inflection and intonation like a mantra.

The easy part was over, she knew, which meant that now she had two whole days of waiting to get through. She wondered fleetingly how she would handle them, but she couldn't bring herself to be nervous about it, not yet. Not when she was still cheering herself for doing so well.

She also wondered if she'd ever, ever in her life, been so excited about _dinner_.

Yumi looked back at Sachiko-sama with her head resting against the seat, eyes closed, as rich, golden blocks of afternoon sunlight curved in and around the contours of her face. She seemed to be thinking her own thoughts, the smallest of smiles lifting the corners of her mouth almost imperceptibly.

_No._

_Not ever._

* * *

Around six o'clock on Friday evening, Yumi patted her midsection lightly, baffled. It was still oddly absent of butterflies.

_Well, there's _one_ thing to be said for procrastination_, Yumi thought as she fidgeted on the couch in her sitting room, _it gives your stomach a bit of time off._

Because she'd only completed her task on Wednesday afternoon, Friday had arrived swiftly, so much so that Yumi found she'd had little time to over think Sachiko-sama's imminent arrival. That's not to say she hadn't felt _any _anxiety over it… but forty-eight hours of nervous apprehension was infinitely better than a whole week of torture.

Over the last two days she'd placated her mind with the thought that Sachiko-sama had already been introduced to her parents and had liked them- she'd said so- and that, though she hadn't actually _come inside_, she'd at least been to the Fukuzawa's front door, so she must have a vague idea of what to expect. She knew that her onee-sama would never do anything so crass as to compare their lifestyles, not in the disdainful or pitying way that some rich folk do (not that Yumi knew many people like that- there were a few Lilian names she could think of, but none worth mentioning), and that if she _did_, it would probably be with honest curiosity, so she felt no worry at all that the home she lived in wasn't as grand as the other girl's.

The only approaching landmark that Yumi could foresee was having Sachiko-sama visit her room for the first time. She'd taken the time to make sure everything was neat and orderly as soon as she came home from school, though, so the rest of the hours were spent waiting, brushing invisible creases from her clothes and eyeballing the clock.

When a knock sounded at the door, she practically flew to answer it.

'I'll get it!' she called out to her parents, keen to answer as soon as possible.

The table in the hall had other ideas. It savagely attacked her toe as she strode by it.

'Uwah!'

With a yelp, Yumi hopped the rest of the way, and stopped before the entrance. Raising her foot, she hissed in pain and gripped the pulsing toe she'd stubbed through her genkan, trying to soothe it with the pressure.

_Oh, smooth, Yumi-chan_, she thought as she glared at the table (_you have no idea how lucky you are that we don't have a wood fire)_, and opened the door.

Needless to say, Sachiko-sama stared at her as it swung open forcefully; grimacing with pain with a foot in the air wasn't usually how one answered their door, and her eyebrows twisted in confusion.

At the unasked question, Yumi blushed and grumbled, 'I stubbed my toe on the table…'

Sachiko-sama bit her lip as she looked between Yumi and the table, trying not to laugh.

'Don't laugh! It hurts!' She was whining; she knew she was whining, but it really did hurt.

Raising a decorous hand to her mouth, Sachiko-sama's restraint obviously shattered, and she giggled openly.

'You know, my toe could be broken for all you know…'

But truthfully, she couldn't help smiling as the girl before her continued to laugh. It was wonderful to hear it again, infectious, sweet and lilting, even if it was at her expense. Sachiko-sama stepped over the threshold and into the genkan that Yumi had placed in the entrance for her with a 'What-am-I-going-to-do-with-you?' look. It was loaded with affection, and Yumi felt the pain in her foot melt away, revelling in it.

Just then, Miki Fukuzawa appeared.

'Ah, Sachiko-sama. Welcome to our home.' Yumi looked over to where her mother stood in the hallway, holding the ever-present tea-towel and smiling graciously at their guest.

'Thank you for coming, and on such short notice.' A quick eyebrow rose pointedly in her direction and Yumi rolled her eyes. She knew she shouldn't have mentioned that she only invited her on Wednesday.

Sachiko-sama pretended not to notice the little reprimand and bowed gracefully. 'It's a pleasure. Thank you very much for the invitation, Fukuzawa-san.'

Clearly charmed, Yumi's mother smiled. 'The pleasure is ours. You've taken such good care of our daughter.'

Yumi flushed with embarrassment at the remark and quickly glazed over it, asking how dinner was coming along.

'It should be ready in about twenty minutes,' she answered, and turned her gaze to their guest once again. 'I hope curried fish will be okay?'

'Of course,' Sachiko-sama confirmed, 'I like curry very much, providing it's not too spicy.'

'Ah, good. Yumi's done her homework, then.' And with a grin, she winked at her daughter, 'you were right, Yumi-chan,' and excused herself to the kitchen once more, as Yumi rolled her eyes again.

_Honestly, if there was ever a more embarrassing parent…_

And yet, she turned to Sachiko-sama feeling unexpectedly calm, collected, despite her mother's best efforts to tease her- as if having this extraordinary person sitting in her house, waiting to be fed, was the most normal thing in the world. She supposed it must have been the combination of feeling secure on home turf and the easy smile that Sachiko-sama had met her with as their eyes connected again. It was difficult not to get wrapped up in her onee-sama's expressions.

'Would you like to sit upstairs while we wait for dinner?' Yumi asked.

'Please.'

With a happy skip, Yumi lead the way upstairs.

'Will Yuuki-kun be eating with us this evening, Yumi?' Sachiko-sama asked, her voice floating up the stairwell behind Yumi.

'Actually, he's out for dinner this evening at Kobayashi-kun's,' she replied, opening the door to her room. _Here goes…_

'I see.'

Sachiko-sama stepped inside and Yumi, closing the door quietly behind them, watched her intently.

Her gaze traversed the entire room, left to right, dipping and rising with the furniture; across the bed, skirting the white computer desk and the two door cupboard, through the titles in her bookcase, lingering on the plants… It looked almost as if she was trying to memorize it all, learn it, placing the room wholly inside of her mind.

During this, and as a distraction from her watchful gaze, Yumi continued to talk about Yuuki's dinner arrangement.

'Out of everyone on the Hanadera Council, Yuuki seems to get on with Kobayashi-kun the best. I don't think he has much in common with Arisu-kun,' Yumi said with a blush, remembering the pretty little second year's rather… effeminate ways.

Sachiko looked over from where she'd travelled to Yumi's bookcase with a wry smile, causing Yumi's heart to flutter with the pleasure of being able to share their private joke.

'And from what he's told me about the new additions this year,' she continued, 'they seem to have very few interests other than sports, so I think he gets quite bored talking to them after a while.'

With an understanding nod, Sachiko-sama left the titles she been perusing. 'It would be natural to become closer to with Kobayashi-kun then, under such circumstances, and he seemed a nice young man when we met.'

Yumi fought the urge to snicker. It sounded almost like she was referring to one of her elementary pupils, even though he was barely a year younger than she was.

'Oh, yes,' she said instead. 'Very much so. Actually, Kobayashi-kun lives very nearby and often comes round on his bicycle to visit during the week, so I've gotten to know him quite well. He even helped me with my math homework once when Yuuki couldn't remember the method.'

A little time after hearing this, it was with a very aloof expression that Sachiko-sama said, 'You are fond of Kobayashi-kun?'

For a moment, Yumi really didn't get the meaning behind the question.

_Fond? Of course I am fond of him. He's becoming like another brother to me_, she thought initially.

And then she noticed the almost undetectable tensing of Sachiko-sama's posture, the way she subconsciously brushed her forefinger with her thumb, the slight tilting of her head, the surreptitious but loaded glance... _Then_ she understood.

And Yumi laughed.

'Oh no! No, no! Not like that!' She giggled, waving her hands to emphasize the point. 'I think that I just prefer him hanging around over that sneaky Kashiwagi-san,' and she made a creeping gesture with her fingers.

Sachiko-sama gasped at the comment, shocked for a moment, and then, just as Yumi started to worry about what she'd said about a member of her onee-sama's family, she suddenly began to giggle as well.

'Yes,' she agreed, through hiccoughs of laughter, 'yes, I think I would prefer that too, Yumi.'


	8. Chapter 8

They had been called for dinner shortly after sharing their joke about Kashiwagi-san, amidst conversation about Sachiko-sama's teaching.

Upon entering the dining room, Yumi had found the table set for four in exactly the same way it would be for a normal family dinner with Yuuki present. Her mother and father's places were determined by half-filled glasses of wine at either end of the table, leaving Yumi and Sachiko-sama to sit facing each other as she and Yuuki did during meals.

Spotting the chopsticks beside each plate, Yumi had offered to fetch a knife and fork from the kitchen for Sachiko-sama if she would prefer it, conscientious of the fact that she may not be used to eating with the sticks, but the other girl had declined; as a guest of the Fukuzawa's, she'd like to eat as they eat.

Sitting across from her now, Yumi shook her head at herself for ever having doubted her onee-sama's abilities. Sure, she may have always eaten food with cutlery at home, everything from sandwiches to fruit to ramen to great banquets of venison and game; but she was Ogasawara Sachiko, and there was nothing that she couldn't turn a hand to perfectly.

It was otou-san who initiated conversation over dinner, as usual.

'Yumi-chan tells us that you teach English pronunciation to elementary students, Sachiko-san.' It was a kind of questioning statement, something that her father did well; asking questions without actually asking.

'I do, Fukuzawa-san,' she replied brightly, and brought another portion of fish to her mouth with practiced ease. Truthfully, Yumi had had a hard time trying not to stare at Sachiko-sama's hands since she first saw her pick up the chopsticks. She held them delicately, elegantly, as if they were nothing more than an extension of her own long and graceful fingers, and for the first time Yumi noticed- _really noticed_- just how beautiful they were.

'Is it something that you are considering as a career then, after you graduate?' her father asked confidently.

For a long moment, Sachiko-sama considered the question, chewing thoughtfully on her food. Yumi surreptitiously turned a keen ear to her as she emptied some more rice onto her plate. This, oddly, was something they hadn't yet discussed and, though it was rather a personal question to ask so soon into a meal, Yumi was eager to hear the answer. The thought of Sachiko-sama's future beyond graduation had certainly come to her before, but she'd never given it much time, probably because she hated the idea of it separating them.

'I would say that it is definitely something I would _like_ to do- teaching certainly brings joy to my life- but there is my family business to also consider an option.'

It was very diplomatically put, but enough to hint at where her true preference lay.

Yumi, having been privy to both Sachiko-sama's positively luminous smile as she interacted with her pupils as well her apathetic disinterested before leaving for company events, was fairly certain that there was absolutely no comparison between the two, family business or not. But she was also aware that the young heiress needed to maintain at least a vague enthusiasm for the Ogasawara Group. Nothing else shouted 'dishonour' louder than a company's sole heir flippantly dismissing it, and no-one knew that as well as Sachiko-sama did.

'I see.' With a surprisingly understanding expression, Yumi saw her father nod at the answer. 'Yes, I understand that your engagement to Suguru-san was cancelled not long ago. You have a certain responsibility on your shoulders now.'

If Sachiko-sama did, in fact, appear confused at his informal reference to Kashiwagi-san, Yumi noted that she must have covered it very quickly because even _she _wasn't sure that she'd actually seen it.

She would have thought on it longer if her father hadn't started his next comment as he did.

'And if it's not too bold for me to say so-'

Yumi panicked; her father, as much as she loved him, could be _far_ worse than her mother when it came to sharing his own enlightened opinions on other people's private business.

But what could she say? How could she interrupt _now_, when he was mid-sentence?

And before she even had time to think of one thing, it was taken out of her hands.

'- where I can understand his concern as a businessman myself, I was glad to hear it. I do think it rather early to be promising one's daughter out in marriage, even if to a close family member, especially considering that Ogasawara-sama is barely a few years older than myself. He has a fair few years left in him yet, I daresay,' he finished, with a cheeky wink.

Yumi blanched. _Oh my God! I can't believe you _did _dare say that!_

Barely managing it, Yumi raised her head, ready to apologise to Sachiko-sama as much as she possibly could with only the use of her eyes.

But the other girl, sitting neatly across from her with all the serenity and loveliness of Maria-sama herself, was _laughing_.

Yumi's gaze flicked between her father and Sachiko-sama, shocked. He was smiling easily at her, charmed, and she was returning the smile with her own; one that was filled with appreciation for his honest opinion, and Yumi, for all of her previous internal grousing, offered him a mental high-five. She couldn't have been more proud to be his daughter, right then.

And then he went and ruined it.

'Unless, that is, you already have your eye on someone, eh?'

She took it all back.

_Maria-sama, if you could open up a black hole or a vortex or anything else that could just swallow me up, I promise I will never ask for anything again..._

* * *

Eventually, finally, _mercifully_… dinner ended.

For almost the entire meal, Yumi's father had rarely let up on what Yumi referred to in her mind as his 'civil interrogation' of Sachiko-sama. Questions about her studies, her hobbies, her family, her pupils, her _love life_, for crying out loud! And for one brief, agonizing moment during a conversation about her shopping with Yumi on their first date, she even thought that he was going to ask her _sizes_!

She was mortified beyond belief, and as soon as the door to her room was closed behind them once more, she whirled around to Sachiko-sama and immediately apologised for his behaviour with more vehemence than she ever had before in her life.

'I am so sorry! Otou-san is _always_ like that. He just-'

'Yumi..'

'-doesn't seem to know when to hold his tongue! I know he's my father, and I do love him but-'

'Yumi?'

'-I can't believe him sometimes! He is always teasing people, always asking questions that-'

'Yumi! _Stop._'

Feeling a sudden shake, Yumi stopped and stared at her hands. They were suspended in mid-air, trembling.

Looking up, Sachiko-sama stood before her with her arms outstretched, both palms resting on Yumi's shoulders, gently but firmly. It was she who had shaken Yumi, bringing her out of her whirlwind of apologies.

Yumi blushed hotter than ever before, she was sure.

'Calm down,' Sachiko-sama said kindly, softly. 'Really, Yumi, you do make such a fuss sometimes.'

Shaking herself this time, Yumi stared into the other girl's amused eyes in disbelief.

'But… but…'

With a light chuckle, Sachiko-sama released her grip on Yumi and walked over to the bed.

'Do you think me insulted?' She asked, sitting down gracefully on the edge of the mattress and fixing Yumi with an inquisitive stare.

'I… Well, I…'

She had no answer.

Sachiko-sama laughed her lilting laugh again, and stood up, making her way over to the two door cupboard at the far side of Yumi's room. 'Did you know that this is the first time I have ever been invited to anyone's home for dinner, aside from with my family as the Ogasawara child?'

Completely nonplussed, Yumi remained silent, only watching as Sachiko-sama reached out and picked up the photo frame that resided on top of her white cupboard. It was hard to believe, after all; Ogasawara Sachiko, 'Miss Lilian', never invited to anyone's home before for a meal?

There had been a group of at least five girls or so following Yumi about like a pack of wolves that Valentine's Day, hoping to tear the red card right from her jaws if she found it. Sachiko-sama had been admired, Yumi hazarded a guess, by _at least_ half of the student populace during her tenure at school. And as well as all of her fans, what about her friends? What about Rei-sama or Sei-sama? _Okay, maybe not Sei-sama_, Yumi admitted, _but what about Youko-sama?_ She was her grande soeur, her guide and caretaker for two years! Surely, the former Rosa Chinensis had invited her en bouton home for dinner… Surely…

And yet… Yumi realised that she had been her petite soeur for nearly the same amount of time now, come September, and that this was only the first time that Sachiko-sama had set foot in her house.

And those girls… she couldn't recall any of them ever even saying 'good day' to her onee-sama, much less inviting her round for tea.

Yumi thought back.

Sachiko-sama had always seemed somewhat off-limits until they had, quite literally, run into one another, even when she had reached for Yumi's collar that fateful autumn morning. She was unapproachable, one might say, owing to her projected image; her aloof, serious personality, her almost unmatched intelligence, her natural authority, her breath-taking looks, her innate self-assurance…

_But… _Yumi thought, as she looked over to where Sachiko-sama stood in the far corner of her room, thoughtfully studying the photo, _this girl isn't like that at all…_

She had a hidden shyness, one that was blanketed by a seemingly impenetrable aura of confidence. Yumi had never once considered _all at once _that Sachiko-sama was aloof because she felt different, detached from normality; or that she might feel some days that her stomach is too big, her arms too long, her hair too dull; or that her intelligence might feel completely useless in the face of having only one career path laid before her, regardless of the many things she wanted to turn a hand to…

'No.' Yumi said at last. 'No, I didn't know that.'

With a sad smile, Sachiko-sama put the photo of their first meeting back on the surface of the furniture and returned to sit on the bed.

Instinctively, Yumi went to her side and sat down.

'Your father… Yuuichi-ojisan… No-one has ever made me feel so welcome.'

Her father had requested early on that Sachiko-sama refer to he and his wife as 'aunt' and 'uncle'.

'Really?' Yumi couldn't help it. Having come to the conclusions she had only moments ago, she wasn't quite as shocked as she would usually have been, but she was still surprised that Sachiko-sama had actually _said it_, nonetheless.

'You know, growing up in my house was how I imagined geisha training in Gion,' she declared suddenly, with a bitter laugh. 'Tea ceremony, Noh Mai, ballet, horse-riding, pronunciation, flower arranging, piano… With the exception of occasions with my mother and, sometimes, my father, I was rarely treated as a little girl. I… I don't really remember laughing.'

Yumi drew in a breath silently, feeling a stinging in her eyes, and delicately held back from reaching out to take Sachiko-sama's hand, feeling that now was not the time.

'The dinners and parties I have been invited to in the past; they were father's business associates or distant family barbeques, full of people straining in one way or another to work their way up in his good graces. Up the ladder, as it were.' She sighed. 'I am always spoken to respectfully, but it is always so insincere.'

She still hadn't looked up, staring at that spot in the near distance, somewhere only those who are looking at the past can see.

'Coming here and being teased and taunted affectionately by your father, speaking to me like family, like a… a daughter… was like finally receiving the gift I'd wanted for years.'

Yumi stared at the floor. In all honesty, she had absolutely no idea what to say.

Sachiko-sama had never, _ever_ been so open with her, and Yumi had truthfully never anticipated such a day coming, so she was really having a hard time digesting everything. A part of her wanted to shake the woman beside her and shout '_what have you done with onee-sama!_' This… uncharacteristic confession had completely blindsided her, and it was unsettling.

What do you do the moment you realise that someone so perfect, so flawless, is actually heart-wrenchingly human?

'Yumi?'

She looked up, meeting Sachiko-sama's level gaze. She could feel her own eyes shaking, watering, but the other woman's dark, serious eyes remained just that, and without one hint of a tear.

_How do you do that?_

'Please. Don't be upset with your father.'

And just like that, Yumi's answer came to her.

'You will always, _always _be welcome in my house,' she said, with all the sincerity in her heart, and grasped the other girl's hand in her own.

With a thin but honestly grateful smile, Sachiko-sama said: 'Thank you, Yumi.'

'You don't even have to call.'

At this, she hesitated. 'Well, I… I will, anyway, its only pol-'

'Whenever you like!' Yumi added, inspired.

'What?' Sachiko-sama said through an incredulous laugh, taken aback.

'Day or night, rain or shine, front or back door!'

Yumi was laughing now, letting the mood take her. She stood up, keeping the other girl's hands in her own, waving them excitedly, and for all her surprise at the sudden turn in the conversation, Sachiko-sama half-laughed, utterly bemused by Yumi's antics.

'We can get a skylight fitted! For when you come by helicopter!'

'_What!'_

And suddenly all of the tension, sadness, nostalgia, confusion… all of it faded from the room as they laughed together at Yumi's ridiculous invitations and ideas; custom built rollercoaster ideas from Sachiko-sama's window to Yumi's, giant catapult ideas from outside the university to the Fukuzawa's back garden, dog-sled ideas in winter…

And Sachiko-sama joined in, losing herself in Yumi's silliness for the rest of their time together that evening until the car (the only mode of transportation they _didn't_ mention, incidentally) arrived to pick her up.

At the door, Yumi handed their dinner guest her coat after she'd pulled on her outdoor shoes and, as she turned to leave, Sachiko-sama thanked Yumi for a wonderful evening, hoping aloud that it wouldn't be too long until she could return for another meal with the Fukuzawas.

'It won't be,' Yumi had answered confidently, and then shouted to Sachiko-sama's retreating back, 'and it will be especially quick if you come by rollercoaster!'

Turning on the spot, Sachiko-sama gave Yumi, hands down, the most dazzling smile she had _ever _seen.

* * *

**No preview this week, folks. I've written what will be up here as the next chapter very shortly (as soon as I've gone over it a couple of times - I don't have a beta reader, you see, so apologies for any mistakes made but it gets hard to spot them when you automatically insert words you know you wanted to put there), but it will be very much a filler to flesh out the story before a key chapter. Yes, you read correctly! Finally! A KEY CHAPTER. Where something other than the weather happens!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:**_ Wow, I've had such a great response from everyone... Thank you so much, I'm glad you're all enjoying it._

_I loved writing Sachiko's little disclosure to Yumi, and I think it came across okay. I tried to keep it short and to the point because I just don't see Sachiko as the kind of person who would pour her heart out, even to Yumi, which is why she didn't cry. It got to _me_ a little though when I re-read it, especially when she said that she doesn't remember laughing. My heart just bled for her...  
_

_Welcome to __ by the way, **lhaine lee**, now a fully-fledged member, and thanks for your comment- I'll be sure to give your ShizNat story a read sometime soon :)_

_Everyone else, thank you for your continuing support._

* * *

Before anyone had realised it, the month of June had drawn to a close.

'_Canada?_'

Yoshino-san practically shouted it.

Given that it was the last day of term and that they would all be returning a week early to go over plans and suggestions for the cultural festival, everyone had decided to let that subject rest for the remainder of the day, relaxing into their companionship and discussing their individual plans for the summer.

Yumi saw Touko heave a long-suffering sigh at Yoshino-san's outburst; _young ladies don't shout_. There really were overlaps between her and Sachiko-sama, sometimes... 'Yes. I have family in Canada, and considering I missed the opportunity to go last year,' a faint blush crept across her neck, 'they offered to have me stay this year instead.'

Yumi smiled secretly. Among the many things they had discussed regarding Touko's erratic behaviour before becoming soeurs, they had touched upon her turn up at the Ogasawara's country summer home early on. Yumi had never especially thought that her then-to-be soeur had come solely to create trouble, thinking only that she was there as a family member and, therefore, invited, but she had felt wonderfully light-headed when Touko confessed later (and almost begrudgingly) that she had gone to 'watch over Yumi-sama', refusing a holiday to Canada in the process.

Yoshino whistled approvingly as she reclined in her chair, impressed.

'And what about Yoshino-san?' Shimako-san queried.

'Fff! I'd tell you but it totally wouldn't compare to somewhere like Canada!' Even in terms of holidays, she hated to lose.

'It's hardly a competition, onee-sama,' Nana-chan said, rolling her eyes affectionately. 'Besides, do you honestly think that we'd believe you'd rather go to Canada than visit Rei-sama at university?'

With only a slight huff, Yoshino-san shrugged, waving a hand: _of course not_.

The rest of the Yamayurikai smiled knowingly. There was no choice between Canada and Rosa Foetida's beloved cousin, they had no doubt.

'Rosa Chinensis, you are visiting family as well this year, aren't you?' Noriko-chan asked, remembering a conversation that they'd shared earlier in the week.

It had taken a while, but Yumi had slowly become more accustomed to the title, and this time, with no small trace of pride and only the briefest flicker of Sachiko-sama face in her mind, she answered to it.

'Yes, my aunt and uncle in Yamanashi. We're leaving on Wednesday.'

'Ah! Going up Fuji as well, eh, Yumi-san?' Yoshino piped up, obviously over her minor grumblings.

'Oooh no… _Definitely_ not.' Yumi shook her head. 'Not unless we have a horse and cart to pull my aunt up behind us. She is very, _very _pregnant.'

'Oh, that's lovely, Yumi-san. Congratulations to them both.' With an indulgent smile, Shimako-san gave her best wishes to Yumi's aunt and uncle. 'You will be excited to visit then, yes?'

'Y-yes, of course,' Yumi said, trying to hide the fact that she wasn't actually looking forward to it at _all_.

'_Fufufu_…' Like a mischievous breeze, Yoshino-san's whispery laughter caught her attention. '_Fufufu_…'

Busted.

'Yumi-san doesn't want to go at all, does she? _Fufufu_…'

Although she glared at her friend, Yumi still flushed with embarrassment: it was totally true and, what's more, she'd been _really _obvious about it.

'Why not, Yumi-san?' Nana-chan asked quizzically.

She sighed. 'It's not that I don't like them, but it gets very boring there without anyone my age to talk to, especially now that there's a baby on the way. I bet I'll have finished my homework by the first evening,' she grumped.

'What about Yuuki-kun?' Touko asked suddenly. 'Isn't he going too?'

Actually, Yumi had already told her petite soeur all of this about a week ago, including the fact that Yuuki would be remaining behind in Tokyo, and she was surprised that she didn't remember. It was rare for Touko to be so forgetful- her sponge-like memory was one of the things that Yumi considered made Touko such a proficient actress (and student)- she just soaked up information. Or had her soeur just stopped listening when Yumi had spoken of her brother's holiday plans?

No. That was even more unlike Touko.

_Oh well, I suppose one has to wring out a sponge on occasion, as well_, she thought, deciding that she must have just forgotten.

'No, Yuuki is staying with Kobayashi-kun for the week,' she sighed. 'I wish I could stay too.'

To be honest, she had hoped to get a call from Sachiko-sama inviting her back to the lovely summer house she retreated to every year, wishing for the seclusion they'd shared together with no-one but each other for company. She knew it was awfully presumptuous of her, but she'd hope for it all the same. In fact, she was hoping to get _any _kind of phone call from Sachiko-sama, invitation or not. For the last week she seen neither hide nor hair of her; not on the bus, not in passing, not at a distance on campus, and the last time she'd called no-one had answered. She was actually beginning to think that she'd done something to offend her.

Yoshino-san spoke again, interrupting her worries.

'You want to stay with Kobayashi-kun too, eh, Yumi-san?' She was on a roll today, still chuckling away with her impish laugh.

But before Yumi could laugh off the playful tease, Touko-chan suddenly leapt up from her seat.

She slammed her hands on the table, making them all jump back in surprise, and glowered at Yoshino-san with a fierce intensity.

'That's not what Yumi-sama meant and you know it, _Rosa Foetida!_'

For a long moment, the room was silent. Each member of the council stared at Touko-chan as she leaned menacingly over the table at Yoshino-san who, for all intents and purposes, looked as utterly shocked as Yumi was feeling at her petite-soeur's sudden outburst. Yumi knew that her friend had only been teasing her, not serious in the slightest, and she felt incredibly sorry for her right then, her usually vibrant yellow petals wilting under Touko's powerful glare.

'I-I…' she stuttered. 'I didn't mean it, Touko-chan… It was just a joke.'

'Touko-chan…' Yumi said softly, placing a hand on her petite-soeur's arm.

Suddenly remembering herself, Touko sat down slowly, with an expression that was a rare combination of sheepish and indignant, and Yumi wondered what on earth had gotten into her. It had become incredibly out of character for Touko to lose control in such a way since she had accepted Yumi's rosary. Admittedly, she would still snipe at people on occasion, but no more so than Yoshino-san, or Noriko-chan, or _any_ of the others, if they'd just so happened to wake up on the wrong side of the bed that morning.

A heavy tension had filled the air following Touko's impromptu one-eighty, and Yumi tried to think of a way to break the atmosphere. She didn't want their summer holidays to begin like this. Uncomfortable partings sometimes had a habit of growing into Worries over time spent apart, as she well knew. Besides, things like this had happened before many a-time with all of the Roses, past and present, and more often than not, specifically with Sachiko-sama, so Yumi smiled; she had plenty of experience here.

'Well, anyway, I'll have plenty of spare time during my week in Yamanashi, so I'll be sure to _pore_ over the many wonderful ideas that I'll be sure to think of, when the time comes.'

She grinned broadly around the table at each of them, pleased to see their shoulders relaxing a little at her ironic over-confidence, and it was Yoshino-san who said, 'Well, don't do all the work for us Yumi-san. You'll make us look bad when we get back empty-handed.'

The others all nodded in agreement, but Touko-chan only very meekly.

Yumi reached out under the table to where her petite-soeur's hands were clasped in her lap and gave them a reassuring squeeze, and with an almost feather-light pressure, Touko squeezed back: _thank you._

Satisfied, Yumi relaxed into her chair again, withdrawing her hand.

'And don't try _too_ hard. You remember what happened last year, right?' Yoshino added with a smirk. Yumi certainly did. Waking up in the school infirmary that first and only time had been absolutely terrifying, not to mention humiliating considering the reason, but she appeased herself with the knowledge that, in making that awful mistake, she'd learned a valuable lesson that she was unlikely to forget. 'We don't want you fainting on us again!'

'Don't worry, it'll be just me and my brain working this time, no heavy lifting involved.'

'…You mean that isn't enough to worry us?'

And simply because the sarcastic quip had come from Shimako-san's lips, hovering daintily above her teacup with a raised eyebrow, Yumi gasped and turned a violent shade of red, scandalised.

'Shimako-san!'

Everybody laughed.

_Mission accomplished_, Yumi thought, happy once again that they had all returned to normal.

* * *

Her jovial mood lasted for exactly three hours and forty-seven minutes.

* * *

'I'm home,' she called out from inside the door, exchanging her shoes for her slippers and hanging up her satchel. She could hear a myriad of voices coming from the general direction of the dining room and, upon poking her head through the door, saw her entire family plus one sitting comfortably together and chatting over drinks.

'Hello, Yumi-san,' said Kobayashi-kun with a wave, spotting her first from his vantage point opposite the door. 'It's nice to see you again.'

'Hello,' she replied happily.

The following three heads swivelled round to welcome her home.

'Dinner will be ready soon, Yumi,' her mother added. 'Would you like a drink?'

'Yes, please. Tea will be fine,' she said, and settled into the seat next to her brother.

Dinner was wonderful fun, although at times she did have to fight off disappointment at seeing Kobayashi-kun across the table instead of Sachiko-sama, but then, ever since their first and only meal together in the Fukuzawa's home, Yumi had felt the same. Even with when it was the four of them, as it had always been for as long as she could remember, after that one evening, it always felt to her that something was missing, that one of their chairs was lonely in its unused state, bare and lifeless without Sachiko-sama's warmth.

Throughout the meal they touched on the regular subjects; Hanadera and Lilian, Kobayashi-kun's parents, her father's architecture firm, their upcoming holidays. It wasn't until shortly into dessert that the matter of their cultural festivals came up.

'Aughh! Please don't talk about that again, Kobayashi-kun!' Yuuki threw his head grumpily into his left hand and poked at the small torte with his cutlery. He seemed to suddenly have gone off it, and Yumi couldn't help but surmise that they must be having just as much trouble with the Hanadera School Festival as she and the Yamayurikai were having with theirs.

'Please, Yumi. _Please_ tell me that you and your friends will be willing to help once we've come up with something brilliant,' he begged.

Feeling light-hearted despite her own festival difficulties, she snickered, 'If we've no need to help until you come up with something brilliant, Yuuki, I might as well hang up my shoes for the winter.'

Kobayashi-kun snorted.

'Hey..' Yuuki groused at them both, sulking, and taking advantage of the distraction, Yumi deftly leaned across the table and snatched a spoonful of his torte from right off his plate. '_Hey_!'

He snatched for her and missed, and she smugly sat back, chewing the torte exaggeratedly as if it were the tastiest little pastry she'd ever eaten, patting her stomach.

'Yumi-chan!'

'What?' The picture of innocence, she gazed between Yuuki and Kobayashi-kun, who was having small fits of giggles by now. 'What? Do you want it _back_?' She asked, feigning incredulity.

'Yumi…' her mother said, with a warning in her tone of voice.

'Well, _he_ wasn't eating your delicious baking, mom. I couldn't let it go to _waste_,' she appealed with a facetious grin. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see her father's shoulders shaking with silent laughter.

With a final heavy look, her mom gathered the dishes and both adults left the room.

'Some lady you are…' Yuuki grumbled.

She didn't feel guilty in the slightest. Yuuki, as much as she hated to admit it, was just that bit smarter than she was (or, at least, that bit more devious), so it was only on rare occasions such as these where she managed to get a one-up on him, and she was pretty sure that she'd only got this far _this _time because of his despair over the subject they'd been discussing. Feeling a bit sorry for him, understanding the pressure, she decided to ease up.

Unfortunately, it was just not her brother's night tonight.

'No, not like _Matsudaira-san_. Eh, Yuuki-kun?' Kobayashi-kun chimed in with a cheeky nudge.

Yuuki groaned aloud. 'Don't you start as well!'

It took a moment for the name to sink in. 'Matsuda-…_Touko-chan?_'

Kobayashi-kun giggled again, nodding.

'You know, you laugh like a girl,' her brother said to his friend, scowling. Yuuki was a sore loser, apparently, _especially_ when it came to Touko-chan, and Yumi sniggered at his embarrassment.

'Hahaha, and it's as close as _you're_ going to get to a real one, _Yukichi.' _Kobayashi-kun retorted.

'Oh, and you've got a line of girls waiting for you to take them out I suppose, _Kobayashi_-_sempai_?'

'No,' his friend replied, realigning his glasses in a spectacularly geek-ish way, on purpose. 'They'll be taking _me_ out! Watch and learn from the master, Yukichi.'

When Kobayashi-kun gave him a brotherly punch on the arm, Yuuki finally grinned again, laughing at his friend's bravado.

'Nah, I'll pass,' he said with a smile. 'Besides, I can just ask Yumi if I can borrow some of hers, right, nee-san?'

Yumi almost choked on her tea. 'Ehh?'

Up to now, she'd been chortling away with Kobayashi-kun, co-conspirators in teasing her grumpy little brother, but suddenly she found the tables had turned on her.

'You've got girls following you all around school, haven't you, Yumi?' He turned back to his friend: ''Yumi-chan's special fans', I call them.'

'_Whaa!_?'

'Oh ho, that's right!' The bespectacled boy laughed. 'Any tips, Yumi-san?'

A ringing came from the hallway, over-lapping her stumbling replies.

Yuuki heard the phone and ran with it. 'Ah! Probably one of Yumi-chan's fans now!'

'Yuuki!' she whined at him. 'Stop teasing me!'

He turned to his friend again. 'Hah! See? She can dish it out but…'

Then her mother's voice floated in from the hallway, '_Yumi-chan, it's for you._'

Her hand had stopped in mid-air, half-way to Yuuki's shoulder in the arc of a slap. 'Okay, I'm coming.'

Her brother stage-whispered to Kobayashi-kun, 'See? Told you.'

She got him a stinger on the arm before bolting out the door.

* * *

Miki Fukuzawa was honestly quite confused.

Not about the blush on her daughter's face as she came hurtling into the hall, or about how it became _that_ much brighter a pink when she'd relayed the information that it was the Ogasawara household calling, but because it wasn't Sachiko-san on the phone; it was her mother.

'Gokigenyou, Sayako-obasama. What can I do for you this evening?'

Miki withdrew to the sitting room doorway, but even though she had every intention of giving her daughter some privacy, there was something that told her to stay nearby, within hearing distance. Some would call it nosiness, she supposed, but she wasn't that kind of person. Nosiness is always the prerequisite to gossip, and she'd never been a gossiper.

Miki was just concerned.

It hadn't escaped her notice that Yumi'd not spoken with her onee-sama in over a week, and she could guess that she'd also not seen Sachiko-san in person during that time either, as her eldest's usual perkiness had been dwindling somewhat of late, more and more as the days went by. She'd caught her glancing wistfully at the phone on one or two occasions, and even today, though Yumi's mood had seemed much improved when she came in, a little of the light in her expressive face had been missing.

When she'd divulged this concern to her husband in the kitchen, he had just stared back at her blankly.

'_How can you be sure something's wrong?' Baffled, of course._

'_A mother knows her daughter.'_

Yumi's face was a white as her knuckles now, as her fingers gripped the receiver tightly. She looked stricken.

'…she is? W-what's wrong with her?'

_Something is wrong then…_ Miki thought, listening closer.

'… an infection?'

_Ah_.

That explained it.

Leaving her position by the door, she went and sat down in the sitting room. There was no excuse to continue listening now, and if she knew Yumi (something she felt she'd just proven quite satisfactorily to herself), soon her daughter would come flying into the room and ask if she could visit her grande-soeur. She had a vague feeling that Yuuichirou would be less than enthused at the idea of Yumi traversing Tokyo in the evening, but not because it could be dangerous; it was barely after seven and still light outside. She suspected it was because her husband had finally come to realise that his only daughter was growing up, and that he was missing it.

Miki shook her head and smiled at the thought, glancing over to the armchair he sat in, reading his paper with a sour look. _The financial section, no doubt._ He would let Yumi go, though, despite the time he wanted to spend with her this evening. After all- she laughed quietly to herself, remembering a conversation they'd had a fortnight ago- it was his beloved Sachiko that was sick.

...

_'She's a lovely young lady, and very fond Yumi-chan.'_

_Miki looked up at her husband from where she was fiddling with the blanket. He'd been quiet for the majority of the night, lost in his thoughts, and she was surprised by the sudden remark._

'_Our daughter is lucky to have made a friend like that.'_

_Yuuichirou hadn't attended Lilian (for obvious reasons) so all the knowledge he had of it he'd learned from observing Yumi and, of course, half-forgotten memories of what Miki herself had told him of her time at the school when they'd first met._

_She could have pointed out that luck had nothing to do with it, that the whole idea of Lilian's soeur system was to find, form and develop these special bonds between friends, but she didn't want to dampen the incredibly high spirits he'd been in since their meal with Ogasawara Sachiko._

_Instead, she just smiled. 'Yes, she is.'_

_He eyed her suspiciously, a grin creeping over his face. 'Don't you take me for a fool, Miki-chan,' he said, wagging a finger at her. 'I know that you don't think so.'_

'_What do you mean?'_

_What _did_ he mean?_

'_Tell me honestly; are all soeur relationships the same?' There was a knowing glint in his eyes as he watched Miki think it over._

_She hadn't seen her own soeurs in many a-year. They still spoke occasionally, yes, but their friendships were nowhere near as close as they had been at school. In fact, most soeur-ships filtered away at the dawn of university, she realised, and most of the girls she'd attended Lilian with had gone their separate ways; some to different parts of the country or abroad, in all kinds of jobs, most married, some not… Miki wasn't disappointed at the knowledge, it was expected- people grow apart. But the point Yuuichirou was making was becoming clearer._

_Lilian University is a good school; it offers a comprehensive variety of subjects, producing fine graduates from each department, has excellent teachers and a lovely campus, but in no way could it be compared with institutions like _Tokyo University _or _Kyoto University _or _Hokkaido University_, or any of those other grand, prestigious schools. Someone like Ogasawara Sachiko, with the grades and background that she had, could have her pick of them all. The expense would clearly not be a hindrance, and she was certainly bright enough to be accepted into any of them, they'd learned as much simply from their conversations with her over dinner... but she'd chosen to stay at Lilian._

_And in choosing Lilian, she'd chosen Yumi._

_Yuuichirou laughed. 'You are certainly the mother to our children.'_

_She stripped the obvious realisation painted on her face and replaced it with a glower, but she had to hand it to him- he was right._

'_I see what you're getting at, Yuui,' she smiled, using her nickname for him, 'and I think you might be right… I can't see those two following the normal pattern of growing apart.'_

_He nodded sagely. 'Exactly. There's something special about Sachiko-san, isn't there?'_

_Miki raised an eyebrow. He wasn't dismissing Yumi- they each knew that their daughter had grown into a wonderful, intelligent young woman that they both admired- but it was rare for him to speak in such a way, especially about young ladies; he could be incredibly bashful sometimes._

_She understood, though, and nodded as they got into bed. Neither of them had really expected the young heiress to be pompous and rude, if anything because _Yumi_ didn't have time for people like that, but they'd been pleasantly surprised to find that Sachiko-san was warm, kind and sweetly humble, and there was absolutely no misplacing the genuine affection that she had for their daughter._

_Miki smiled in the darkness. She could see why he had a soft spot for her._

...

So, when Yumi inevitably came to ask their permission to visit her soeur, who was currently bedridden with some kind of infection, Miki wasn't surprised in the least when he got up, put on his jacket, and drove her there himself without a word.

* * *

**Chapter Ten – preview**

'_Looking back, I don't know why I did it._

_I don't remember thinking about it and when I try to recall what was going through my mind, I'm met with a blank wall- I just… did it._

_I stood up, leaned down and kissed her forehead…'_

**And so we are about to come to a turning point in Yumi's young life, everyone. Watch this space...  
**


	10. Chapter 10

_**A/N: **__Okay, people…_

_Let's rock Yumi's world._

* * *

Sayako checked the screen again.

The small TV in the sitting room had been connected, at Tooru's request, to the entire CCTV system that monitored their extensive grounds, but she was only interested in the channel that displayed the front gate.

Sachiko-san had been ill for over a week now. It had apparently started with a bout of flu that had settled obstinately in her stomach last Wednesday and refused to go away. At first, her daughter had waved off her concern when she'd (tactfully) mentioned that she looked paler than usual, her features more drawn, saying that she was sure she was just feeling the strain of the end-of-terms exams, and that it was nothing that a healthy dose of sleep couldn't cure. It wasn't until one evening before dinner when Sachiko-san collapsed at the table that Sayako realised just how sick she was.

Her daughter hadn't helped the matter, of course, she thought ruefully. She'd foolishly pushed herself to attend her remaining lectures before the end of term, and when Sayako had called for Iwamatsu-sensei, he revealed that in neglecting her illness she'd actually made herself worse. The flu virus had mutated, working its way into her kidneys, and developed into a bacterial infection. He wrote out a prescription for some antibiotics, of which she was to take four a day, and some anti-inflammatory painkillers, recommending that Sayako administer them whenever she suffered a high temperature.

It was today that she'd hit her peak, sometime in the afternoon.

When Sayako had quietly entered the room, Sachiko-san had been in an awful state. Half-awake, half-asleep, she was shivering and sweating. Her usually pale face was a bright scarlet and she was delirious, muttering and mumbling about what, Sayako had no idea. She'd hurriedly given her the anti-inflammatory drug alongside her antibiotic and sat patiently by her side, pushing the hair back from her head and waiting for the fever to subside, worried for her little girl, and, eventually, she did calm down. Her body sunk back into the mattress, no longer shivering, but she was still red-faced and a little delirious.

It was _then_ that Sayako had heard Sachiko-san call for Yumi. She'd sounded almost as if she was begging for her petite-soeur, and though Sayako couldn't be _sure_, she wasn't an ignorant woman, and it had fed a nagging suspicion at the back of her mind. However, she'd put that thought away at the time, deciding to do what she thought best for her daughter, and made plans to call Yumi.

On screen, a small family car had just made its way through the gates.

Rising from her chair, Sayako made her way to the front door and greeted the Fukuzawas warmly.

She offered a drink to Yumi's father, a handsome man with a sympathetic face, but he declined, not wishing to intrude.

'I can get the bus back, dad,' Yumi said softly. 'You don't need to wait for me, I'll be alright.'

'Okay, Yumi-chan,' he nodded. 'Take care of Sachiko-san, yes?' He left quickly after with a kind smile for Sayako. He was obviously fond of both girls, and it was a lovely thing to see, she thought.

Turning to face Yumi, she was met with wide, worried eyes.

'Sayako-obasama, is Sachiko-sama really okay? You didn't sound worried on the phone but I-' The words were spilling, tumbling one after another from her mouth so Sayako placed a hand on her shoulder, much in the same way she'd seen her daughter do to calm Yumi's nerves. It worked beautifully, as she had suspected, and she gave a gentle push to the young woman, directing them to the stairs.

'Don't worry, she'll be fine. The doctor told me today that as long as she gets plenty of rest, she should be much better in a few days.' Releasing a tense breath, Yumi nodded as they made their way to her daughter's bedroom. 'Try to be quiet, Yumi-chan, but please speak with Sachiko-san. I think she has been missing you more than you know.'

With a coy smile, Sayako left Yumi at the door.

Much_ more than you know._

* * *

When I entered the room, I almost choked.

You can always tell when you've come into the room of a sick person. The atmosphere's heavy and warm, filled with stale breath. The windows are closed, the curtains are drawn.

Sayako-obasama hadn't sounded panicked at all on the phone. She'd asked me to visit Sachiko-sama with a strange voice that I couldn't quite understand, but Sayako-obasama could be as mysterious and unpredictable as her daughter at times, so I'd just glazed over it and agreed to come.

'Onee-sama… I'm here.'

I kept my voice low as I walked lightly over to the side of her bed- I didn't want to disturb anything. Three of the drapes that lined the sides of her bed had been pulled across. I figured it was possibly for the quiet, but this beautiful, stately four-poster bed, with the drapes closed, would feel like a coffin to me if I were in her place, so I gathered them at the corners and let some clearer air from the rest of the room flow through.

_Onee-sama…_

She looked so small and fragile. The thin, navy blanket over her had gathered around her waist as she'd wriggled around. Half way between lying on her back and lying on her side, Sachiko-sama had her mattress arm curled weakly around her stomach, and had thrown the other over her eyes, shielding them.

_What are you hiding from Sachiko-sama? There's no light in the room…_

I didn't know if she was asleep or not; she hadn't answered when I first announced I'd arrived, so I kneeled down on the floor beside the bed and waited, looking at her face. The darkness of the room obscured my sight, but under the shadow of her arm, I could see the delicate shape her lips as they let short, ragged breaths pass.

'…Yumi…'

It was barely a whisper. My name, carried on a sigh. I wasn't sure if she knew I was here yet or if it was still lingering delirium, so I stayed my tongue, but my heart raced with hope.

'…Yumi…?' Stronger this time, a definite call.

'Sachiko-sama… I'm here, onee-sama.'

She seemed to be over the worst of it, but I tried to keep my voice as low as I could, knowing how she was feeling. When I'd got the flu in middle school, I couldn't bear hearing people around me. It felt like every letter and word collided together inside my head, making it spin and ache, and I would vomit. I couldn't listen, I couldn't talk.

But Sachiko-sama was strong. She lifted the arm from her eyes, letting it fall against the bed, and relaxed onto her back, facing me with a strange expression. Her eyes were barely open, dull and squinting to try and see me. The rims were red and swollen and I could see that a sheen of sweat had formed across her forehead and nose in her fever. Where it had been caught in the moisture, her dark black hair, usually so lustrous and soft, had matted and knotted, sticking to her cheeks.

I smiled for her. She looked beautiful, even in sickness.

'Are you here?' She reached out weakly. 'Am I dreaming?'

_That again…?_

Pushing the thought aside, I shuffled closer on my knees and took her limp hand in my own; she needed me.

'It's not a dream, onee-sama. I'm here. I've got you.'

She gave a faint smile then. 'Ah… Yumi….'

Unable to stop myself, I softly brushed the hair from her forehead, resting my hand to the side of her face. She was still warm, but whether from temperature or sleep, I couldn't tell.

'Thank you…' she said. 'Thank you…'

I could feel my thumb moving gently against the soft skin by her eyebrows. I wasn't sure what she was thanking me for, moving her fringe or just being here, or even if it was me she was speaking to, but I was happy not to ask. I just wanted her to feel better.

For some time, we stayed like that; I, crouched beside the bed, caressing her slowly. She, relaxing into the touch, eyes closed. It felt almost as if I was worshipping her, knelt before her reverently in prayer.

But things were stirring inside me.

_This feeling…_ I felt like I was aching for her, trying to absorb her pain, and I had a gurgling sensation in my belly with every brush of her skin. The memory of my last visit was playing over and over behind my eyes, the electric touch that I'd not understood.

'_Am I dreaming?'_

I was confused.

_What is this feeling?_

She was so soft, so frail. I wanted to protect her, comfort her, and something in the back of my mind was pushing forward, telling me that I was changing things. Youko-sama's voice echoed far away; '_the older sister protects'_, but I ignored it. This was right. This was why I had been called over.

_What… what's happening?_

…

'_I love your face, hair, voice, fingertips, everything…'_

…

_Sachiko-sama… Why do you want me to say your name?_

…

'_Sachiko-san has been calling for you in her fever, Yumi-chan. I think she would feel comforted if you were to visit.'_

'_I think she has been missing you more than you know.'_

'_Am I dreaming? Is this a dream?'_

…

It was strange; in the darkness of her room, things began to flow into my mind.

I was flashing back to things she'd said and done over the course of our friendship; holding onto me as she slept in the car, buying jeans and sneakers like mine, always fixing my clothes, dancing with me. I remembered how shocked I always was whenever she teased me because it was such an unusual thing for her to do. Sachiko-sama never teased anyone.

Except me.

A rhythm had started in my pulse, an unsteady heartbeat, as I started to string it all together.

_It can't be…_

Sachiko-sama leaned on me more than anyone else. I had always assumed it was because I was her imouto, but now…

I stared at the mattress in uncertainty. Was I just going mad? Reading into things too much?

And _why_? _Why_ was I? Was this some kind of strange hope, or fear?

I stared at her as she rested peacefully against the pillow. At some point in my thoughts, I must have moved my hand away because she'd let her head fall to the left, following it. Her breathing was deep and even now, far from the shallow, pained gasps she was taking when I arrived.

'_Am I dreaming?'_

It wasn't the first time she had asked that, or the first time that I had answered. She'd embraced me back then with so much force. It felt almost as if she were afraid that I would pull away and leave her standing there alone. Afraid that I was only a spectre from a dream stood before her that she wanted to make real.

The gurgling feeling in my belly intensified and it flipped.

'Sachiko-sama… do you dream about me often…?'

I didn't mean to speak aloud and I blanched as I felt her move. All the air inside me became trapped. _Yumi, you idiot!_

But she reached over and took the hand I had left on the bed, grasping it lightly, opening her eyes.

'Sachiko-sama…?' She echoed, with a watery half-smile, and smashed my panic into pieces.

I released the breath I was holding with a laugh.

Onee-sama… of all the times to tease me. _Sachiko-sama, what a mystery you are._

Looking back, I don't know why I did it.

I don't remember thinking about it and when I try to recall what was going through my mind, I'm met with a blank wall- I just… did it.

I stood up, leaned down and kissed her forehead.

It was something she'd done to me before when I'd been upset or confused, something that I'd accepted gratefully as comfort from my onee-sama. It was warm and homely, and it had settled my tears. I suppose I'd wanted to offer the same to her as she lay recovering from the flu. Maybe, I'd wanted to make her feel as safe as I did when she held me as I cried, to just let her know that I was there when she needed me.

So when my world turned over and my heart exploded, I froze.

Stood there, with my mouth inches from her, I could feel the sweat forming on my brow. The scent of her skin flowed into my nostrils and around my racing mind. Not the flowery aroma of her shampoo, not the delicate smell of whatever perfume she used. This was the undiluted essence of _her_, and I could taste it on my lips.

It filled me and flowed through me in my blood, pumping hard around my body.

I trembled. _What's happening to me?_

I could feel her sweat tingling on my lips as I hovered above her, wrapped in the smell of her, and I knew, without any doubt, that no-one else, save maybe her parents and grand-parents, had been close to her like this.

Moisture trickled down the side of my face and I panicked.

_What do I do? How can I go back from this?_

I loved her.

I loved her more than anything.

If something happened, something (god forbid) catastrophic, that erased everything I knew and held dear, as long as Sachiko-sama was with me, I knew in my heart that I would be okay. I knew that she was all I needed to get through another day.

Kashiwagi-san had asked me once how I could choose my number one. My mother, father? Yuuki? Sachiko-sama?

Having to choose now, I knew what my answer would be.

_Oh God… Maria-sama…_

_Help me… _

_What have I done?_

A terror seized my heart.

_Sachiko-sama… _I closed my eyes, standing a little more upright, and prayed. _Please. Please, Maria-sama… Let this be our secret…_

I didn't know what I would've done if she'd suddenly opened her eyes to me right then. With my patent 'hundred faces', I had no doubt that she would've been able to see right through my thoughts. She was, after all, my onee-sama, and it was almost impossible to deceive her, even if I was doing it for her own good.

Praying with every ounce of faith I had that she hadn't stirred, I gathered the courage to look down at her. With time to think things over, time to prepare, I figured I could keep this to myself in future, but if she asked me right now, I wasn't sure if I'd be able to cover it. It was still too fresh in my mind.

When I finally lowered my gaze, relief flooded over me. She hadn't moved-

-but my breath caught.

Her head was still resting calmly to the side and her chest was moving slowly up and down with steady, even breathing under her lilac camisole.

It was like I suddenly had someone else's eyes.

Along with the majority of Lilian, I had always admired her; she was beautiful, intelligent, graceful, and all the other things that people wished themselves to be. I had always looked up to her, tried to emulate her, but in the way that you would appreciate a magnificent painting or a wonderful piece of music. It was like gazing upon Maria-sama.

But right then, watching over her prone form, the door to that image closed in my mind forever as I looked at her, not as an idol, but as a girl.

I took in the length and elegance of her arms as they lay on the bed, the porcelain hue of her skin, the curve of her shoulders, the hollow at her throat… Her face, peaceful as she dozed, was sharp and defined, yet soft and feminine, framed gracefully by her long, fine hair, and the feel of her hand in my own was achingly soft.

I stared at her.

She was lovelier than I had ever imagined and I had taken it all for granted for so long.

I tried to call to memory the feeling of her body pressed against mine, the texture of her hair in my hands, the smoothness of her skin on my own whenever she'd held me when I was upset, but with a pain I'd never felt before, I discovered that I couldn't.

I was right; I couldn't go back from this. I couldn't remember her any other way than how I thought of her now.

And, miserably, I also realised at that moment that I had to leave, for exactly the same reason. I couldn't stay- not with this revelation.

I allowed myself one last, lingering look as I decided to leave.

Everything was going to change now. The way I looked at her, the feeling I got when she fixed my collar, our dates… Right then, I realised that school was going to become harder than I ever imagined. Talking with friends, my classes, duties in the Yamayurikai… All of it.

And it would hurt. I was hurting already, having to force myself to leave.

But I had to. I couldn't stay, not now.

Gently, I started to slide my hand from hers, feeling the loss already. _Has it always been this hard to leave her?_ I wondered.

Then, unexpectedly, I felt her grip tighten around my fingers. 'No.'

I looked down. She squinted up at me with her dull, red-rimmed eyes.

My stomach flip-flopped. _I love you._

'Stay,' she beseeched. 'Please stay… until I fall asleep…'

'I.. I-' _I love you._

I couldn't speak.

I didn't know if I could bear staying, feeling for her as I did, but she continued to ask me silently, and I knew that I couldn't refuse. I could never refuse her anything, especially not now. If she wanted me to run a marathon, I would, or rob a bank, I would. If she asked me to break into the Prime Minister's bedroom and perform 'Scooping Loaches', I'd do it, for her.

So I nodded, and, satisfied, she let her eyelids close again and rested back against the pillow.

I sat down next to her bed and let my head fall against it.

She would never ask me to do all those thing but, for now, I could do this for Sachiko-sama, at least.

_For Sachiko-sama…_

_For Sachiko…_

* * *

When Yumi awoke later, it was slowly and groggily. She stirred slightly, blinking the sleep from her eyes, and looked around the unfamiliar room.

_Dresser, wardrobe, couches, table… piano… bed… Oh… Sachiko-sama's room…_ she remembered, and felt her eyes shut again with a close-mouthed yawn.

She'd drifted off with her body relaxed against the bed, her head resting on the side of the mattress, knees up, and the soft, knobbly warmth of a hand was nestled under her cheek, its elegant fingers entwined with her own. She brushed against it, looking up along the arm at the sleeping face of Sachiko-sama, who had moved right over to the edge, placing her cheek lightly against Yumi's hair as she slept.

Yumi stared at her unabashedly and without any self-awareness. She was in that beautiful place, that limbo between asleep and awake, where your eyes are open before your mind has had a chance to flood with thoughts and memories and emotions, where you can gaze openly at the face of your loved one, heedless of the consequences because you can't think yet, only feel.

Sachiko looked so still and peaceful. Her dark hair, mussed in sleep, had streaked itself across her face and fallen to hang over the side of the bed, like a waterfall coloured by a midnight sky. Her face was flush against the mattress, pillow forgotten as she'd inched closer, and in the pale light of the evening her skin was silver as the moon.

In her drowsiness, Yumi thought of the Shinto god Tsukuyomi, and smiled at the idea that he could actually have been a woman, _this _woman, whose warm breath was tickling the sensitive skin on Yumi's cheek.

She tried to raise her free hand to touch Sachiko-sama's beautiful hair, curious as to how soft it might be, but, strangely, she couldn't.

_Eh?_

Yumi looked down. Her arm had been caught under a blanket, prohibiting any movement of more than an inch or so, and she blinked at it, confused.

_Blanket?_

And then, with an almighty start, Yumi's brain woke up.

She didn't shout or squeal; she was at least _that_ much in control of her reactions, but her body froze up so quickly that she was sure she might suffer for it later, and Yumi felt her heart stop as she remembered _everything _with clear and perfect clarity, from the moment she stepped in right up until now.

Sachiko-sama… Her hair, her eyes, her arms, her lips, her smell, her breath… _I love you._

_Oh God…_ Yumi could actually _feel_ the blood drain from her face.

_And what about that blanket_? She remembered. It hadn't been over her when she'd dozed off, and she was pretty sure that there was no way she'd have fetched it in her sleep- she didn't even know where they stored the blankets in this house, for a start. The maids weren't allowed in her room when Sachiko-sama was in so… so that left only Sayako-obasama.

It was just going from bad to worse.

Yumi closed her eyes and sighed heavily with the air of one who had just found out that, not only was it mid-terms today, _yes, today,_ but who had also arrived late and at the wrong room.

If it really was Sayako-obasama that had come in, then there was a good chance that she'd seen everything and got… what, the wrong idea? Right idea? Yumi wasn't sure really, but either way, she would have noticed the way they were sat, how close she was to Sachiko-sama, and how Sachiko-sama… had…

_Wait._

It was like lightning.

Yumi, who had managed to stand up and make her way halfway to the bedroom door during her mental regurgitation, stopped and turned around.

She thought she'd remembered everything. Dull eyes, messy hair, ragged breaths, kissed forehead, _I love you_… everything. But she hadn't, and Yumi also hadn't woken up with her head on the mattress, Sachiko-sama facing away from her. She'd woken up holding her hand, resting her cheek on it, with Sachiko-sama's nose in her hair and her breath heating her fringe lightly as they leaned into one another in sleep.

'_Am I dreaming? Is this a dream?'_

Yumi brought the folded blanket up to her chest, squeezing it so hard she could've drawn moisture from the wool. She remembered all the touches, embraces, smiles…

_No, Yumi-chan. You're crazy. You're going crazy…_

She stared down at Sachiko-sama as her hand twitched, seeking something that was missing now, and the faintest, most infinitesimal frown ghosted across her face before it relaxed again, lost to sleep.

Yumi squeezed the blanket harder.

_Sachiko..._

_Are you..? _

_Do you...?_

* * *

**A quick note: **_I know that the POV shift is a bit hard to follow considering the rest of the story has been in third person, but I hope it was okay. I just really wanted to try it :P_

**Chapter Eleven – preview**

'_The direct look softened. 'Want to tell me what's on your mind?'_

_Yumi shook her head but smiled gratefully all the same. She couldn't speak to okaa-san about this, not without opening up a whole other can of worms, but she appreciated the gesture anyway._

'_Ah.' Her mom nodded sagely. 'Teenage troubles. I wouldn't understand, right?'_

_Yumi laughed. 'Something like that.'…'_

**Unfortunately, we next find Yumi in Yamanashi with plenty of time to think and no-one to talk to. But summer's barely begun and Sachiko wouldn't really let a whole month pass without seeing Yumi, would she?**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N:** _Sorry it's been a longer wait for this chapter. I've found myself saddled recently with something closely resembling a real life, so this has had to wait a while. Also, I got rather caught up in __**Saki**__ (which, even though it's about Mahjong, a game I do _not_ understand in the slightest, is a charming little series) and it was hard to bring my mind back to Yumi._

_Anyway, as I said before, we're in Yamanashi for the moment. But don't worry. We'll all be joining Sachiko soon :)_

* * *

Yumi's uncle, Ibuka Eiichi, was an engineer at a nearby robotics factory, similar to quite a large percentage of the Yamanashi-ken inhabitants, and owing to that, he had a steady income that had allowed them to purchase the house that she was currently sitting in, drumming her pencil lazily on the windowsill.

They lived in a fairly large suburb on the outskirts of the city of Yamanashi itself and the property was very much like her own- a spacious, western-style home with three bedrooms and a small garden to the rear. They'd recently moved from an apartment in the city centre in anticipation of the baby and, possibly, given the extra bedroom, with the hope of another in the near future. It was a nice house; tidy, but lived in, and Yumi felt comfortable enough with them now to help herself to tea and instant ramen without asking permission, especially with her uncle.

Eiichi-ojisan was tall and bespectacled, with messy, fluffy hair and a very calming personality. He was so laid-back that when she found out he used to play basketball for his university, she actually laughed and stared at him as he smiled serenely at her from across the kitchen table. She couldn't imagine him displaying any kind of competitiveness, instead calling to mind an image of him sat patiently on the court floor, legs crossed and leaning back on his hands nonchalantly, watching the proceedings around him with mild interest. He'd laughed with her later when she told him. He didn't have an especially sharp sense of humour, but he did love to laugh.

Unlike her aunt, unfortunately.

To be honest, Yumi found it hard to believe that Ibuka Miho, nee Fukuzawa, was related to her father at_ all _sometimes. For a start, they looked almost nothing alike, and secondly, their personalities were _wildly_ different. Yumi supposed though, correctly, that the latter was ultimately down to the age-gap between them; her father's sister was much younger that her brother by almost a staggering fifteen years.

Apparently, their mother, ostensibly Yumi's grandmother, had always wanted two children, a boy and a girl, and had twisted her husband's arm into trying for many years to provide a daughter for her to dote on. This meant that when Yumi was beginning elementary school, her aunt was only just nearing the end of her middle school tenure, and was, unfortunately, rather spoiled as a girl. It was no surprise when Yuuki had declared that he would rather stay behind in Tokyo- Miho-obasan had always been offhand with them in the past, snide and self-indulgent. She'd mellowed considerably over the years as she'd matured, of course, especially after marrying and settling down with the amiable Ibuka Eiichi, but it was still difficult for the Fukuzawa siblings to completely eradicate all bad feeling towards her.

Yumi turned away from the window, putting her pencil back into its case with a heavy sigh. She didn't want to be here.

She _really_ didn't want to be here.

The house was settled at the top of a hilled street and the room she was in faced due east. Ordinarily, it wouldn't have mattered; the Yamanashi horizon looked much the same from almost every angle. The prefecture was nestled in a valley, flanked by a spectacular circle of three mountain ranges to the south, west and northeast, and if _anyone_ looked out of _any_ window on _any_ hill, they would see the rugged beauty of Mother Nature's greatest works.

Anyone, that is, except Yumi, who had spent the last three-and-a-half days staring out of the guest room at the spectacular scenery, scenery that could soothe even the most turbulent of hearts, and seen absolutely nothing except a straight and narrow road back to Tokyo; back to Sachiko.

She hadn't spoken to her since Friday.

Yumi had left the sleeping heiress and returned home with a heaviness in her soul, and she hadn't been able to bring herself to call since then, brushing off her mother's suggestions of doing so with the same excuse each time; that she wanted to leave Sachiko to recover. It was a lie; Yumi knew it was a lie- she'd spent enough years with her body and mind to know when she was kidding herself. A whole week had passed now since that fateful evening, but every time she thought about dialling the number and speaking to Sachiko she found herself freezing up with fear, terrified that something in her voice would give her away, even if all she managed to say was 'hello'. And she was really beginning to hate herself for it. She _wanted_ to call, really, she did… But what could she say if Sachiko asked why she hadn't called in a week, knowing that her onee-sama was ill? What satisfactory lie could Yumi tell her that she wouldn't see right through?

No, it was useless now. Maybe if she'd just steeled hersef and called a couple of days after it would have been alright, but too much time had passed now for it to go unnoticed, and Yumi kicked herself.

'…_Sachiko…_'

She whispered the name, sans honorific. It was something she did secretly and only in the privacy of her room and her heart. To Yumi, she wasn't 'onee-sama' anymore, or 'Sachiko-sama', only Sachiko… a beautiful blessing, a stroke of infinite fortune that Yumi was unlucky enough to have fallen for in the most exhilarating and terrifying way.

She went over to the wardrobe and delicately pulled out the fine, white cotton shirt that hung alone on one of the poles.

Yumi hadn't worn it yet. She'd wanted to wait until their next meeting to put it on, feeling it only right that the first time she wore it out should be when she was with Sachiko, as a private thank you. But when she'd returned home from the Ogasawara household and packed her suitcase for the trip, Yumi had folded the shirt neatly into its own plastic covering, placing it gently down with the rest of her clothes; even if she couldn't stay with Sachiko, she was going to take a little piece with her.

In three days, she'd done exactly as she was going to do now a total of 17 times; she pulled off her top, slipped her arms into the sleeves of the shirt and pulled it around her, feeling the soft, cool brush of the material against the bare skin of her belly.

Goosebumps rose on her flesh as she raised one of her hands up to her face and breathed in the scent of the material. The slightly stiff cuff covered her palm and she nuzzled her nose against it gently, thinking of Sachiko, always thinking of Sachiko, with a crippling combination of both hope and despair.

Yumi wasn't the brightest, wasn't the sharpest, but she was no fool. She'd entertained the thought that Sachiko might return her feelings, sure, daring to wish that it was true, that all the memories of their touches and smiles and time together weren't just in her imagination… but a small, sorrowful voice deep in the back of her mind had told her sympathetically that, even if she was right, the world was a harsh place to live in, and that the feelings she had for Sachiko would be a difficult thing for it to accept. She'd also recognised, with no small amount of pity, that the voice had sounded very much like Sei-sama.

Sachiko was _Ogasawara _Sachiko, and there was just no escaping it. What right did Yumi have to think that she was worthy of someone like her? And even if, _even if_, the universe had decided to swing madly in her favour and throw Sachiko into her arms to hold and cherish and protect and _love so dearly_…

Yumi lay down on the bed and buried her face in the sleeves. The lingering scent of the other girl was still trapped in the fine weaving of the cloth, but it was beginning to fade.

… _even if it had, _there was every possibility that there would be no room for Yumi in Sachiko's future. She had an international conglomerate waiting for her to adopt, the public image of which to consider, and an intensely traditional family whose patriarchs, most likely, would not take kindly to this kind of thing. How could Yumi compare to _that_?

Frustrated, she took the garment off and hung it over the back of the chair beside the bed.

She was getting ahead of herself, she knew. 'This kind of thing' was only a crazy, half-baked idea cooking in the oven of her _own _mind, and she had no way of solidly knowing how Sachiko really felt about her without asking. Which she most _definitely_ was not going to be doing any time soon. How do you ask a question like that? None of the (few) romantic stories she'd ever seen or read were jumping into memory to help either.

Her stomach grumbled, loudly, and she looked at her watch.

6:26. Dinner-time.

On cue, Miho-obasan's voice sailed up from downstairs and through the gap at the bottom of the door. 'Dinner, Yumi-chan!'

_Oh well_, she thought, rising from the bed and pulling her t-shirt back on, _time to placate the beast._

She locked the door in her mind and planted a smile firmly on her face. She didn't want her parents to worry, especially when they were on holiday, but as she took another last look at Sachiko's shirt hanging lifelessly over the chair, she did wish that there was _someone_ who could help.

* * *

It was late into the evening when Yumi's mom knocked on her door.

'Hello, Yumi-chan,' she greeted, poking her head in without waiting for an answer.

Yumi smiled welcomingly, pushing away the sheet of paper she'd been trying to jot ideas onto, and beckoned her mother in. After her last bout of introspection and self-analysis, she'd thrown herself onto the bed and just given up. As a person, Yumi had never been given to thinking deeply about herself, content to sail along in life and just take things as they came (Sachiko liked that about her.) Consequently, this recent surge of soul-searching had thoroughly exhausted her, so she'd decided to try and fulfil her promise to the Yamayurikai instead and think of as many possible themes, plays and stalls for the cultural festival as she could.

Miki Fukuzawa sat down on the bed, stealing a glance at the paper as she did so. It was still blank. 'Is everything alright, Yumi?'

Slightly taken aback, she stared at her mother, confused. 'What do you mean?'

'Yumi.' A direct tone, a direct look. 'You've been quiet and out-of-sorts for days. You haven't eaten nearly _half _as much as you usually do.'

_I've been eating plenty!_ She thought, a little indignant. …_Haven't I?_

She was sure she had. Dinner was lovely- okazu and soup, salmon and rice- and desert was… was… Well, okay, so she'd skipped desert. But she'd had a big lunch, hadn't she? She'd had... er…

Come to think of it, what _had_ she eaten for lunch?

Or breakfast, for that matter?

And then she remembered the enormous growl that her stomach had emitted earlier on.

Oh.

_Well, that explains that, then._

She turned to her mother again, who was watching her expectantly with an expression that was equal parts concern and disapproval, an expression that mothers reserve only for their children, and immediately felt guilty. Honestly, she thought she'd been doing a fine job, smiling and intermingling with the family, laughing and talking as though there was nothing on her mind. She'd really poured her effort into it, and it was disappointing to find that it hadn't worked, even a little.

'Um, I'm sorry… I didn't mean to worry you. Any of you.'

The direct look softened. 'Want to tell me what's on your mind?'

Yumi shook her head but smiled gratefully all the same. As much as she'd wished earlier for someone's help she couldn't speak to okaa-san about this, not without opening up a whole other can of worms. But she appreciated the gesture anyway.

'Ah.' Her mom nodded sagely. 'Teenage troubles. I wouldn't understand, right?'

Yumi laughed. 'Something like that.'

'Why don't you speak to Sachiko-san about it?'

Yumi prayed that her mother didn't catch just how much she tensed up at that moment. 'Uh, no, I-er, no. She's still, um,' Yumi coughed. 'Sick. Right now.' She swallowed around the lie stuck in her throat; she had no idea if Sachiko was still sick. 'I wouldn't want to burden her with this.' _Really_.

Miki Fukuzawa pursed her lips, 'I see,' and Yumi paled, hoping against hope that she genuinely _did not see._ 'Well, how about Touko-chan?'

Yumi gave a bitter little laugh at that. 'No, I don't think Touko would be able to help with this either, mom.'

Her mother shrugged. 'Maybe not, but she'll still listen to you. She is your petite-soeur, after all, your little sister.'

'Thanks, but I'll be okay for now.' Yumi said apologetically, and with a brighter smile she added, 'I'll try not to mope around so much anymore.'

Her mother returned the smile a little sadly and stood up to leave, her shoulders slightly hunched. 'Okay. You know where I am if you want to talk.'

Yumi knew that she'd only wanted to help, and her stomach twisted uncomfortably at having to hide so much from her. Usually, they were very close. Yumi would often go to her parents' bedroom to talk about things with okaa-san before bed; she'd done so most recently when brooding over the Touko'_-chan_' situation and, where her mom hadn't been able to give her the answer, she'd listened, and it really had made Yumi feel a bit better about things with her petite-soeur.

And then, just as the Touko in her mind gave her a sympathetic smile, a thought occurred to Yumi.

'Actually, wait, mom,' she called out, stopping her mother as she turned the handle. Maybe she hadn't hit the right nail when she'd suggested her 'little sister', but she had been pretty close to the idea that had just lightbulbed over Yumi's head.

'Do you think it would be too late to call Kobayashi-kun's house?'

* * *

'Hah! I win! Ten to three, Masamune favour!' The board was wiped clean again.

Masamune Kobayashi loved games. Strategy games in particular, and especially Go. Since joining the Hanadera Council, he and Fukuzawa had had a running Go tournament between the two of them, and he didn't feel any shame admitting that he was quite a bit better than his friend. Fukuzawa had improved considerably in recent months, yes, but Masamune still had the edge.

With a sour face, the Hanadera Student Council President, shining school beacon of integrity, perseverance and congeniality, crossed his arms over his chest and whined like a girl.

'We always play Go. We play Go so much I think my brain's seized up and automatically started calling it Stop. No wonder I'm still losing.' A heavy sigh. 'Can't we play something else for a change?'

Masamune laughed. 'You're such a sore loser, Yukichi!'

'You know, you can stop calling me that any time now,' he grumbled by way of reply, but his frown faded and he chuckled when Masamune gave him a chumly punch on the arm.

It was shortly into their next game when the phone rang.

_Huh? Who would call me at this time of night?_ Masamusne picked up the receiver. 'Hello, Kobayashi residence?'

'Um, h-hello, Kobayashi-kun,' said a recognisable voice on the other end of the line. 'I'm sorry to disturb you and your family so late in the evening.'

'Ah, no problem, Yumi-chan. It's not really that late. Yukichi and I were just playing Go anyway.' He waved off the glare from Fukuzawa at using his nickname again.

She giggled. 'Are you still winning?'

'Always, Yumi-chan. Sometimes I wonder if that brother of yours is even trying to win at all.' He gave a mocking thumbs up to his friend, whose face promptly turned red, but Masamune was unconcerned; as much as Fukuzawa would grumble, he was never genuinely upset about it. He seemed to have an indestructable strength of character.

'Actually, Kobayashi-kun, could I possibly speak to Yuuki? Um, j-just for a moment. About something.'

'Sure,' he said, trying to keep his concern from colouring his speech; there was somrthing in her voice that sounded like tears waiting to be shed. 'I'll just pass you accross.'

Fukuzawa, who had heard his side of the conversation, of course, took the phone without hesitation. He seemed a little confused that Yumi-chan was calling but he gave a casual greeting and sat down on the couch to speak with her.

Masamune waited. He had already heard the almost-tremble in Yumi-san's voice so he was fairly certain that, any moment now, his friend could give him some kind of polite signal to leave the room if he required privacy. But it never came, and Masamune, instead of looking unobtrusively at the wall during his friend's phone conversation (as he'd intended), found himself staring at Fukuzawa's face with his ears twitching at the far off squeak of Yumi-chan's voice. He couldn't make out her words and, so far, her younger brother hadn't said anything more than a brief hello, but he found it interesting, watching the developing conversation unfold over his friend's features. He had been relaxed, casual, to begin with, leaning back into the couch with one foot resting on his knee as he listened, but somewhere along the line he'd stood up, his spare fist balled at his side and his eyebrows drawn tightly together. His eyes darted from left to right.

It was around about then that Masamune realised that he had never truly seen the Student Council President frowning. Not really. Not even _close_. Right now, Yuuki-san was deadly serious.

'Um, hold on a minute, Yumi-chan,' Masamune heard his friend say suddenly. Fukuzawa turned to him, covering the mouthpiece. 'Kobayashi, would you mind if I took this in your room?'

'Not at all,' Masamune answered at once.

Fukuzawa bowed gratefully but he was obviously flustered. 'Thank you,' he said hurriedly, and in a flurry of movement, he'd left the room and dashed upstairs without another word.

* * *

When Yukichi returned to the sitting room, over an hour had passed, and Masamune had reset the game board and begun a showdown with himself to pass the time. His friend sat down on the other side without a glance towards it; he had a pensive look on his face and he didn't say a word.

'Um... Is Yumi-chan okay?' Masamune asked after a few minutes of silence. It was quite forward of him, and not something that he would usually be nosy enought to ask, but during his solo game the sound behind her voice and Fukuzawa's serious expression had been playing over in his mind, and he had come to genuinely worry about her.

He was met with a completely blank expression. 'Hm?'

'Uh, Yumi-chan,' he repeated. 'Is she alright?'

'Oh, Yumi,' Fukuzawa said, as if only just remebering he even _had_ a sister. 'I hope so. She seemed okay when she hung up, but that was ages ago... Hm.'

Masamune blinked. Yukichi had gone upstairs at 10:17pm and returned at 11:43pm. If Yumi-chan had gone 'ages ago', what had her brother been doing for the rest of those 86 minutes?

'I'm sorry for hogging your room for so long, Kobayashi,' Fukuzawa said, breaking into his thoughts. 'I was trying to think around a problem.' He sighed heavily. 'But I can't think of anything else to do.'

Masamune was thoroughly confused, but he didn't ask questions; the cagey words were enough to tell him not to pry. If Yukichi wanted him to know, he would tell him.

Instead, his friend rose to his feet again. He seemed to have come to a decision, but judging by the way he asked the next question, it was with a hefty amount of reluctance. 'Sorry, but can I use your phone again, Kobayashi? I need to request a favour...'

Masamune nodded. 'Sure,' he said, inwardly wondering who on earth Yukichi would dare to call at this hour.

'Thanks,' Fukuzawa replied, and as he made his way to the door again, scratching the the back of his head, almost as an after-thought he grumbled, 'I hope Kashiwagi-sempai doesn't shout at me for calling so late,' and then shut the door behind him.

* * *

**Chapter Twelve - preview**

_'But today... Yumi paled as she felt her stomach give another lurch, and she sighed. Today was another matter altogether._

_The car was stuffy and warm despite the air conditioning, her stomach had been fitfully turning over her breakfast for the past hour and a half, she couldn't sleep off the claustrophobic headache that had settled behind her eyes due to lack of sleep, and it was, in her humble opinion, absolutely and unequivocally, _entirely Sachiko's fault_...'_

**Apologies if my characterisation is a little off at all over the next few chapters. To be honest, I really did find it difficult to get back into the swing of things.**

**That said, though, I would like to thank each and every one of you who have taken the time to review this story **_**because they are what made me so determined to carry on**_**. Reading over all of your comments really cheered me on, so thank you so, so much.**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N**_: I really didn't want to spend too much time in Yamanashi. It was unnecessary and would've mostly comprised of Yumi trying desperately not to pore over her new feelings for Sachiko, so we're moving on. Not perfect, pace-wise, but I don't enjoy writing chapters for the sole purpose of fleshing out the story. *shrugs* Sue me._

_Again, thank you all so much for your comments. Although, I do feel like I've somehow twisted some people's arms into it with the note at the bottom of chapter eleven! I'm not trying to whore reviews, I honestly just wanted to say thank you...  
_

* * *

Sachiko had always, _always _disliked travelling. She enjoyed different places, different cultures, certainly, but it was getting to and from them that was the problem. More often than not, it was easy to settle her stomach with some travel sickness medicine and relax back under a blanket until she fell asleep. Today, however, as the black chauffeured car powered up the motorway, the wind whipping past, Sachiko was finding it difficult to nod off.

Suguru-san had called for her at an ungodly hour this morning. He obviously knew that she and her mother were leaving for their summer home today, because there was no other reason she could attribute to his calling so early; having familial familiarity, he knew there were _very _few things that could rouse her at 7:15 during the holidays. He'd called under the pretense of wishing them a safe journey, and to remind them both of Saionji-obaasama's upcoming 89th birthday, but Sachiko had interrupted him shortly into that conversation. How could she possibly forget _that_ after what had happened last year? _Tenshi-sama... _She smiled to herself at the memory of Yumi as she stood resolutely, like prey circled by a pack of wolves, singing beautifully in her pure white summer dress. _ Angel... Absolutely._

No, there had to have been some ulterior motive to his last-minute contact, and when she'd boldly said as much, he had laughed and said again how much more insightful she'd become.

...

_'Then, to what do I owe this pleasure?' Sachiko asked, frustrated and only half-aware that she'd slipped back into the sarcastic tone she used to use whenever they spoke. Recently, she'd had no call to be quite so offhand with him, not since their engagement had been cancelled, but he was speaking to her now almost as _he _used to, with that cryptic, supercilious tone behind his words that grated on her so. And even though she'd been awake for some time now, it was still early, she'd just recovered from quite a severe illness, and she hadn't spoken to Yumi in over a week. Needless to say, Sachiko was feeling irritable._

_Suguru-san only laughed. 'Your morning habits haven't changed, I see. Eh, Sacchan?' Another burst of laughter as she huffed in response. After a moment, he said, 'I was speaking with Yukichi last night.'_

_'Mm?'_

_'It seems our little Yumi-chan has run into difficulties.'_

_Sachiko's back bristled at the 'our', but she graciously overlooked it in favour of asking the more important question. 'What kind of difficulties?' There was a worried edge to her voice, she could hear it, but she felt it fruitless to try and hide it from Suguru-san. Unfortunately, he was as perceptive as he was intelligent. He would make an excellent Company Director, someday._

_'Difficulties of the most boring kind, apparently, I'm afraid,' he replied, with a melodramatic sigh. 'You know she has gone to visit her aunt and uncle, I'm sure?'_

_Sachiko nodded and then, remembering that she was on the phone, said aloud that she did._

_Yumi had actually relayed her plans to Sachiko on the phone a few days before the end of term, along with a brief family history and barely-concealed apathy at the thought of spending an entire week there. Sachiko had invited Yumi to call her anytime during the holiday, but following that, their conversation had been cut short by one of the maids knocking and beckoning her to dinner. She had originally intended to go on to invite Yumi to her summer home again after her stay in Yamanashi, but had left for her evening meal, content in the knowledge that she could always request Yumi's refreshing company at a later date. As it happened, Sachiko'd had no chance to do so, due to that abhorrent kidney infection, and since then had been unable to contact her._

_'It seems that she could do with a friendly ear, Sacchan. Yukichi's parents, aunt and uncle have been so wrapped up in planning for the new offspring that Yumi-chan has been neglected for the entire vacation. Poor thing; she called her little brother in desperation.'_

_Sachiko rolled her eyes; he really was being an actress about this, but her stomach was beginning to flutter. If Yumi was really having such a lonely time... why hadn't she called?_

_It wasn't the first time that Sachiko had wondered this. In fact, each day she'd found herself glancing over at the phone longingly, wishing for it to ring as she lay reading and regaining her strength. She'd initially put it down to the fact that, as it was a vacation, Yumi was probably revelling in the freedom, taking jaunts to and from Yamanashi itself and absorbing the culture and scenery. Sachiko had told herself Yumi was just busy having fun and didn't have the time to call, so she hadn't paid much heed to the little niggle of discomfort at the back of her mind._

_But now, in light of this news, she was getting a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach._

_Over the past few months, she and Yumi had taken to speaking at least twice a week on the phone, and Sachiko had grown to relish their frequent conversations. It was another thing that she'd been unaccustomed to to begin with; just as she had never been invited to someone's home for dinner, it was rare that her friends called for a casual chat. It wasn't that they _never_ called, but it was usually to discuss some business or other that they needed her input on, and even though her own onee-sama would call to speak with Sachiko for no other reason than to see how she was, it was never more often than around once a month. It was only Yumi, as it always had been, who sought out her company for nothing other than to talk affectionately with Sachiko about anything that crossed her mind, for no particular reason._

_So, _why? Why_ hadn't she called?_

_Yumi could repeat Sachiko's own phone number to her backwards, so she knew that forgetting her address book couldn't be an issue in this scenario. It was possible that Yumi didn't want to speak ill of her family to Sachiko (it certainly wasn't a very gracious thing to do when you were being fed and housed by the very same people), but considering how _obviously _disgruntled she'd been when talking about it during term-time, Sachiko found it hard to imagine that that was the reason. Add to that the fact that her petite-soeur had looked so _relieved_ when she'd offered her company on the phone anytime, it seemed utterly bizarre that she'd not heard from Yumi at all._

_The only conclusion she could come to was that it was to do with _her_. Why else would she neglect to call?_

_'...Sacchan?'_

_Sachiko jumped guiltily. She realised that she hadn't been paying attention at all. 'Yes?'_

_'I asked if you wanted the number?' He apparently repeated, with a grin in his voice. Sachiko had the feeling that he was almost laughing at her._

_'Which number?'_

_He really did laugh at that. 'My, the forest of your thoughts must be as thick as the one in your gardens. For the Ibuka residence, to reach Yumi-chan.'_

_With a small 'oh', Sachiko blushed, thankful that she was on the phone. Suguru-san could be merciless in his teasing sometimes, and it was rare that she lost her composure in such a way._

_'Yukichi gave me the number to forward on to you last night. You see, when I spoke to Touko before she left for Canada, she seemed quite disappointed that she wouldn't be able to spend the holiday with yourself and Yumi-chan. Naturally, remembering your plans, I advised Yukichi that spending the following week with you, Sacchan, would undoubtedly cheer up his little sister.'_

_Sachiko nodded to herself. Yes, she remembered asking Touko-chan if she would like to join them when she'd come to visit before school broke off for the summer. Her cousin had been grateful for the thought but had politely declined, choosing this time to visit family abroad. Sachiko sighed; if only it had been Yumi who had visited her at home before she'd fallen ill... Then they wouldn't be in this estranged predicament where, once again, Suguru-san was being meddlesome in their affairs._

_'Anyway,' he continued, when she made no reply, 'Yukichi seemed to think than no such invitation had been extended, so I offered to relay Yumi-chan's temporary contact information to you in order to remedy such an egregious oversight.'_

_With the distinct feeling that she had fallen victim to conspiracy, Sachiko smiled wryly as she replied. 'I see. And Yuuki-kun seems to think that it would not be unwelcome for me to call the home of someone whom has never met with me uninvited?'_

_With a similarly dry smile colouring his voice, Suguru-san said, 'On the contrary, Yukichi made the suggestion himself.'_

..._  
_

Sachiko brought her mind back from the morning and into the car again, where her mother was humming softly next to her in her sleep.

She had taken the number and told her interfering cousin that she would give the matter some consideration, but there was no question as to what she would do later that evening. She would call Yumi and, as she had originally planned, invite her to stay until the following Monday. Her pride was a little wounded at having to receive his help again, but it was unavoidable this time, and despite herself, she was grateful. Without it, there was no way she would have the number that she was currently grasping in the pocket of her jeans.

Sachiko sighed deeply as she watched the mountains ahead unfold over the horizon. Honestly, she wanted to resolve whatever seemed to be the matter between them on the phone as soon as possible, but she was fairly certain that this was a situation that required some delicacy, and she'd decided to clear her mind of it until they next met. When she wasn't in one of her (increasingly rare, now) bouts of hysteria, Sachiko was a sensible and methodical person, and she felt no reason to torture herself over something like this; she would ask about it in person, and in the meantime just open her ears to Yumi's voice when they next spoke together. Patience, as they say...

She closed her eyes and slowed her breathing. If she was a betting girl, Sachiko would probably put a small wager on a growing hope right at the epicentre of her heart, but she wasn't and wouldn't. _Yet_. Yumi would come to stay, she knew that to be fact, even though the lack of contact pointed towards the contrary, and only_ then _would Sachiko start to put her poker chips in.

* * *

Yumi had always liked travelling on almost any kind of transportation. Sure, there was always something interesting at either end, she conceded, whether it was home or school or Yamanashi or Italy, but she often found the real joy of any trip was making the actual journey from point A to point B. She liked that for a few minutes or for a few hours, you had absolutely no responsibilities to attend to, no call to worry about what had to be done, because it was all put on hold for the time being whilst you made your way from one place to another. The most you had to consider was when to eat and when to stop for the toilet, and they were both ostensibly things that were decided _for _you. It was freeing; it gave you the rare opportunity to sit and watch the world pass without having to interfere in it whatsoever, and it was calming to her; luckily, she hadn't suffered any car sickness since she was a very young child.

But today... Yumi paled as she felt her stomach give another lurch, and she sighed.

Today was another matter altogether.

The car was stuffy and warm despite the air conditioning, her stomach had been fitfully turning over her breakfast for the past hour and a half, she couldn't sleep off the claustrophobic headache that had settled behind her eyes due to lack of sleep, and it was, in her humble opinion, absolutely and unequivocally, _entirely Sachiko's fault._

..._  
_

Knock knock.

_'Yumi-chan?'_

_Yumi opened her eyes reluctantly to the evening sunlight that streamed through the crisp white curtains._

_'Yumi-chan, wake up!' The muffled voice on the other side of the door called out again, and then manifested itself in human form as her mother burst into the room excitedly. She was beaming far too brightly for Yumi's liking, who had been hit rather severely with a nasty case of heatstroke after spending too long in the garden under the mid-afternoon sun._

_'I'm awake...' she said, yawning and rubbing her eyes groggily. She'd always been largely unconcerned by hot weather, much preferring it to winter, but too much of a good thing, as they say..._

_'There's a phone call for you.'_

_'For me?' Yumi echoed back to her, confused. __**Who would call me here? All of the Yamayurikai are busy with their own holidays. We agreed to make plans to meet after everyone had returned. And I doubt that okaa-san would get so excited about Yuuki calling back. Surely it couldn't be-**_

_'It's Sachiko-san!'_

_Now, if Yumi hadn't been so suddenly shocked into the waking world, she would have almost been embarrassed at just how happy her mother seemed to be that Sachiko was calling, but as it was, she'd bolted upright and promptly begun to panic._

_'Sachiko-sama?' Yumi bit her lip, wondering what to do. She'd been encouraging herself, little by little, to just bite the bullet and dial Sachiko's number before going back home, and she was actually considering going ahead and doing so after her nap this afternoon... but now the opportunity had been cruelly torn away from her and, worst of all, she was completely unprepared._

_She thought hard._

_It was obvious that she was in the house this evening considering her mom had undoubtedly had to ask Sachiko to hold while she came upstairs to fetch her, and she couldn't ask okaa-san to pretend she'd just gone out. It was possible that she could play on her heatstroke... but she brushed that aside as well; there was no way she could fool her mother into believing that she was suffering a sudden relapse or that it had brought with it an impromptu bout of mumps or something. She'd learned many years ago on trying to score a day off school that she was no more convincing an actress than she was an ironmonger. Perhaps, if she could-_

_'Yumi...?'_

_With a yelp, Yumi jumped and stared up at her mother again, suddenly remembering that she was there, and who was looking back at her as if she was an alien being. __**Maybe I am**__, she thought ridiculously. __**Maybe that would explain why I'm so weird. Maybe you're not my mother at all.**_

_'Well?'_

_Yumi hauled herself out of bed. Unfortunately, she wasn't an alien, and therefore could not use the excuse of being unused to such primitive human technology as 'the telephone', nor could she or would she use any of the other stupid excuses her startled mind had coughed up at her. In the end, she knew that she would take the call. It was inevitable and, really, she should just get over herself a little, speak to Sachiko, and stop being such a baby about this._

_Easier said than done, of course._

_Yumi pulled on her robe and followed her mother downstairs, her knees shaking slightly, with a new thought punctuating each footfall._

(step)

_**Where on earth did Sachiko get this number?**_

(step)

_**I can't see Yuuki calling to give it to her...**_

(step)

_**Okaa-san! Couldn't you have just told her that I was sleeping?**_

(step)

_**It's not like it would've been a lie...**_

(step)

_**I hope Sachiko's feeling better.**_

(step)

_**I wonder if she remembers that I came to visit...**_

(step)

_**Maybe she doesn't... She was pretty out of it.**_

(step)

_**But what if she does and she remembers everything?**_

(step)

_**She might hate me.**_

(step)

_**She might want me to stay away from her...**_

(step)

_**Oh God-**_

(step)

_**-what if... what if she doesn't?**_

(step)

_**What if... what if I was right...?**_

_And with trembling hands, Yumi picked up the receiver._

_'G-gokigenyou, S-sachiko-sama...'_

..._  
_

In the end, despite Yumi's fevered imagination (something that she mercifully attributed to heatstroke), Sachiko did not tell Yumi that she hated her and never wanted to see her again, nor did she confess her undying love. Sachiko, in fact, completely neglected to mention _anything_ about the night that Yumi's world had been totally up-ended aside from a brief but sincere thank you to her for 'dropping by.'

Okay, she hadn't exactly used the phrase 'dropping by', Yumi couldn't really imagine Sachiko using that sort of casual language in thanks, but the tone it had been delivered in had sounded so flippant to Yumi that she couldn't help but feel a little bit like that convenient piece of straw again.

Yumi tried to relax back into the car seat. She knew she was being childish. Sachiko didn't know how important that evening had been- how could she?- and it was unfair of Yumi to paint her with the brush of disinterest. If anything, Sachiko had proven just how much she wanted to be near her by finding her contact number and calling to invite her to stay at their summer home again.

With a sigh, Yumi gazed out of the window and concentrated her efforts to just _calm down_. She'd accepted the offer without a moment's hesitation, which had struck her as quite surprising when she thought about it later. As she sat in her room, dazed and positively humming with anticipation, she'd supposed that she should have at least given the request some thought, considering it would mean spending so much time in such close proximity to Sachiko, something she desperately both wanted and feared. It was almost as if she was back at square one with the other girl, itching to be closer to her, to know her, but hanging back and just watching, safer at a distance. Back then, when they first met, she'd felt like a tiny, insignificant asteroid orbiting near the sun, mere spacedust compared to its eternal, blazing majesty, that had suddenly been pulled into its gravitational force. Yumi chuckled a little bitterly. And she'd thought she might be burned _then_...

But she shook her head, trying to banish her pessimism. Sachiko _wanted her to go_. _That_ was what she had to remember. And spending an entire month without seeing the quirk of her lips, or the smile in her eyes, or hearing her laugh like she meant it, would be infinitely worse than perhaps what might only be a few tense silences as she fought to stop herself from looking at Sachiko as an imouto shouldn't.

And maybe... maybe Yumi might just find an answer to the one question that was burning inside of her.

_'No. Stay. Please stay... Until I fall asleep...'_

The tiny flame of hope ignited in her heart once more and she smiled, brushing her fingers over the palm that had been grasped so tightly, yet so softly.

'How kind of Sachiko-san to call and invite you to stay with them again.'

Yumi looked up at the reflection of her mother's eyes in the rear-view mirror. She could tell she was smiling.

'Mmm,' she acknowledge quietly, still basking in the warmth of her memories.

With some effort, her mom twisted round in the front seat to face her, and with her hands clasped tightly to her chest, gushed at the privilege of being able to view the Ogasawara's country house for the first time.

Yumi rolled her eyes at the behavior. 'You know, it's just a house, mom. It's not even that big.' But she smiled anyway, with all the soft pleasure she felt at returning to Sachiko.

'It's not just _any _house, Yumi-chan, it's the _Ogasawara_ summer home,' she declared, and then sighed like a schoolgirl with a crush. 'Regardless of the size, I bet it's so beautiful...'

Her mom was now gripping the top corner of her seat with her chin resting on her hand, a far-off look in her eyes as she daydreamed about their destination. She could practically _see_ the sparkles at each side of her face as she no doubt conjoured up house after magnificent house in her imagination. She looked so _goofy_ that Yumi couldn't help but laugh.

_I can't be an alien. There's no doubt about it; this _must_ be the person who gave birth to me._

'We'll be there soon, mom, so you'll see for yourself,' Yumi said, her laughter fading away gently and leaving a smile. 'I don't think we're far away now.'

She was quite sure that they were very near, actually. They'd come off the motorway and onto a regular road, the rugged, mountainous landscape falling away behind trees and houses. Yumi had never approached from this direction before, coming only from Tokyo in the east, so she had no way of actually _knowing_, but... she just had this feeling that Sachiko was close. It felt like... like coming home after a long time.

Then, at long last, Yumi spotted the sign she had been diligently searching for.

_**'SAWA'**_

Her dad pulled the car into the drive.

'Okay. Here we are.'

* * *

**Chapter Thirteen - preview**

_'Thank you, Sachiko-san. I'm sure you will be one of the first to know from Yumi. She's... she...'_

Huh?

_A sudden silence._

_Yumi turned her eyes away from Sachiko and to her mother, surprised and, honestly, concerned. She'd just... stopped speaking. As if the words just died at the back of her throat. Miki Fukuzawa was facing Sachiko, but her eyes were fixed on something by the entrance to the house, wide with shock, and she'd frozen in place. _

_Yumi met Sachiko's eyes briefly, in a shared moment of apprehension, and then they turned as one to follow the path that her mother's gaze burned through the atmosphere._

_In almost exactly the same way as Sachiko had, Sayako-obasama made her way serenely from the bottom step of the front door to where their little group were stood in the grip of a tense silence. Yumi didn't fail to notice that her mother watched every step._

What on earth?...'

**Well now... Here we are indeed. After a lonely week, Yumi will be reunited with Sachiko, thanks to her parents driving her all the way out there. But they are not the only ones reunited in this chapter...**

**Also, am I the only person that would love to see Sachiko play poker? I bet she would be _awesome_ at poker... *feels the soft tendrils of an idea caressing the back of the brain* **

**Sachiko is a national poker champion and Yumi is working at a TV station hosting a tournament. Sachiko arrives early because, well, she's _Sachiko_, and Yumi is setting up. Sachiko offers a friendly game to pass the time before everyone arrives but Yumi confesses that she's rubbish at it. Eventually, Sachiko twists her arm into a game and finds out that she's actually really, _really_ rubbish at it, and offers to teach her each morning...**

***laughs* Would anyone even read that?**

**Hmm... *thinks* You know what? I might write it anyway, even if I don't post it...**

**After this, of course :P  
**


End file.
